Full Circle
by ArcTheJedi
Summary: Naruto Uzumaki, Sixth Hokage, loving husband and father... until tragedy steals it all away. To reclaim his bright future Naruto must race through long-forgotten memories, confront a ghost from his past, and bring everything Full Circle.
1. Sunrise

Well, I said to look for this first chapter by the end of May, and here it is the First of June. (Shrugs) I suppose those of you who know me already will not be surprised that my time-estimating skill is still batting a big fat zero. Oh well.

Now then, **IMPORTANT NOTE** for you new readers: this story takes place after my other fic, Trial by Leaves, which itself takes place after my two oneshots, Years of Blindness and My One and Only Star. You don't _have _to read those stories first to enjoy this one, but Trial was written specifically to set up Full Circle, so... (shrugs) You can get to them through my profile, if you want.

Oh yeah, **Disclaimer: What? Me own Naruto? That's preposterous --next you'll be suggesting the world is ROUND! ...wait... o.O**

That everything? Good. Let's begin. Enjoy!

* * *

The rays of the morning sun danced across the vast expanse of trees sprawling out toward the horizon. Vibrant reds, earthy browns, and green-tinted blues stood out among the forest at the base of the mountain; the Village Hidden in the Leaves, painted with a serene light. Sitting upon the mountain's crest was Naruto Uzumaki, Sixth Hokage, a smile on his face and the sunrise at his back.

He sat alone on the carved head of the Fourth Hokage, his father. Naruto supposed he could choose to perch atop his own image, but he decided he liked the view better where he was. On some mornings Konohamaru would join him, standing atop the Third's grand head, but today Naruto enjoyed his silent vigil by himself.

As he watched over his home, a gust of wind carried the sound of countless stirring leaves up to him, as if the whole forest sighed in contentment. Naruto found himself echoing the sentiment. In the tower below him waited the duties of his office, the routine and the rigmarole of being a responsible leader, but that was later, that was the future; for now he allowed himself a moment of peace, watching a day full of promise begin.

* * *

Naruto took one step into his office, took one look around--

"**There** you are, sensei!"

--and grimaced. He threw a glance over his shoulder at the clock over the door. "Udon," he sighed, "have you been here over night?"

His logistics officer poked his bespectacled face over the clutter of reports, graphs and books piled high at his desk, looking all too much like a gopher peeking out of his burrow. "No, sensei. I came in at 5:02 this morning," Udon replied before dipping out of view again. "There's just so much to get done today! I've almost finished balancing the accounts in preparation for the trade convoys, and then of course there's the audit of the treasury to complete, the ANBU rosters to arrange, the Academy supplies to supplement, the public maintenance budget to finalize…" A hand appeared groping at the top of one of the columns of paper. It dislodged a precarious book and deftly caught it before it fell. Before retreating into the nest of numbers the hand used the book to gesture toward the center of the office. "I need your signature on the recent completed mission summaries before I can approve funds transfer. The annual individual shinobi evaluations have come in, too; I left them on your desk for your review. Oh, and then there's…"

Udon kept speaking but the Hokage let his voice fade out as he looked again where his desk should be and saw an amalgamation that was more paper than wood. Naruto breathed a long sigh, silently grateful that at least the desk was built thick and sturdy enough to support the weight.

His eyes slid past the waiting paperwork and he suppressed a smirk. "Well, better get started, I guess…" He strode forward, but when he drew even with his chair he turned suddenly and hopped up on the windowsill. "…in an hour or three."

There was a _thump_ and an avalanche behind him. "W-what?! But-but-but sensei! We have so much to do!"

Naruto spun as he hopped out onto the small ledge outside the window. His eye twinkled as he called, "Have to make my rounds first, Udon. See ya!"

The clumsy scrambling sounds fell away as Naruto dropped. A moment later he landed on the roof of the first-story lobby, very pleased with himself. "Okay," he began, half-turning to his right, "what should I know about?"

"Good morning to you too," quipped Shikamaru Nara, lounging nonchalantly against the tower wall.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "So sorry. 'How _are_ you?' Now what have you got?"

The lazy man flashed a smirk, then shrugged. "Not much today. Patrols spotted another dozen or so separate shinobi near the Village, and at least as many foreign agents have been ID'ed here in town."

Naruto nodded; that was not unexpected. It wasn't that long ago that he had officially taken his place as the Sixth Hokage. Before retiring the Old Lady had warned him that the other Villages would be paying close attention to the Leaf for a while --assessing the new leader's strength and temperament. It would be the same for any of the other leading Villages. Speaking of which… "How are things in the Land of Earth?"

Shikamaru's expression soured a little. "Getting more troublesome all the time. We know there's some internal power struggle going on in their Village, but we can't get much more than that. Those Stone ninja may be ready to tear each other apart, but they're determined to do it in private --our scouts can't get near the place, and even communications with their daimyo have broken down big time. We've gotten in touch with the Kazekage but the Sand folks aren't doing any better." He breathed a long sigh. "It's a drag, but all we've got to go on is what Shino came back with yesterday --the source of a lot of the stink being raised is our old pal Bateo Ryosai."

"Ryosai…" Naruto knew the name, of course. The Ryosai clan was a prominent and powerful family in the Stone Village, not unlike the Hyuuga or the late Uchiha for the Leaf. Bateo was widely credited as the best shinobi fielded by the clan, and the likeliest candidate for the next Tsuchikage --a considerable testament to his skill, since he was still in his mid-teens. Initial reports had depicted him as a good, honest shinobi, dedicated and loyal to his Village. Recently, however… "…Keep trying to gather information, but tell our spies not to try anything crazy --we don't need to know bad enough to risk lives yet." Naruto turned and approached the edge of the roof. "As for our 'guests', keep a close eye on them. Drop the hammer on them if they try anything funny, but otherwise keep your distance and let them see what they came to see."

Behind him, Shikamaru twitched his shoulders in a shrug. "Got it. I'll let ANBU know right away." He yawned, staying right where he was.

The Hokage grinned and dropped to street level, jogging the first few steps and slowing to a brisk walk. Shikamaru was just as apparently lazy as always, but Naruto knew his tactical advisor would get things done with his customary efficiency. He was sure some of the Council members would prefer a harsher stance with the spies, too, but he also knew the difference between displaying strength and hostility.

He shook his head and put the issue aside as he headed into the shopping district; the area ought to be coming alive right about now.

* * *

"Good morning, Lord Hokage!"

"Hail, Sixth!"

"You're looking well, sir."

"Pleasant day, isn't it Lord Uzumaki?"

The sun well on its way upward, Naruto traded smiles and cheery salutations with shinobi and villagers alike as he strode down the busy streets. Not every face was overly pleased to see him; a few grunted a curt acknowledgement or merely _huffed! _before returning to their business. Naruto didn't let these sour greetings bother him, however; it had been a long uphill road, but he contented himself with the fact that he was making progress. After all, expressions of open hate had disappeared years ago.

He was looking through the window of a jewelry store and contemplating picking something out when a very familiar voice rang out with a very different greeting:

"Daddy!"

A joyful smile lighting up his face like a flame, Naruto turned, glided three steps and plucked the approaching toddler out of her run. He twirled her once as he tossed her up in the air. Hizumi Uzumaki squealed in delight, short little limbs flailing and spiky midnight-blue hair floating as if in water. The wild excitement in her pearly eyes made her father laugh out loud, and a moment later when he caught her in a hug her bubbly giggle joined his laughter.

Naruto pulled back far enough to rub the tips of their noses. "Hey there, Princess!" She made a happy noise and kissed his cheek. He chuckled, then glanced around and quirked an eyebrow. "Where's your mother, Zumi? You're not wandering around by yourself, are you?"

Hizumi shook her head vigorously, whipping her bangs around. "Nuh-uh!"

Before she could say anything further he caught sight of her escort. "Sai? What are you doing babysitting Zumi? I thought Hinata was taking her today."

In full ANBU combat garb, his mask hanging down around his neck, Naruto's old teammate approached and stood at rigid attention. "I accompanied Lady Uzumaki and your daughter on their errands this morning. No erroneous activity. Approximately twenty minutes ago, the Lady instructed me to convey that she would meet you at your 'secret place', and assigned me to guard Hizumi until the two of you return."

Naruto gave him a skeptical look. "And was my wife aware you have a Black Ops mission today?"

"The matter did not come up," said Sai evasively. The corners of his eyes softened --only a little, but noticeable-- and Naruto realized that he was looking at Hizumi, who was happily playing with her hair. "It was no imposition. I still have time to prepare."

"Uh-huh. Sai, you leave in--" Naruto glanced at the clock in a nearby window "--an hour. I appreciate your help, but you need to get moving. I'll figure something out for Zumi, just don't keep your team waiting."

Sai gave him a crisp nod. "Understood." He leapt up to the rooftops and vanished.

At the sudden motion, Hizumi squirmed in Naruto's arms and craned her neck to look around. Her face scrunched up adorably, she turned a confused look on him and asked, "Daddy, where Uncle Sai go?"

He kissed her forehead. "He had a mission to go to, sweetie." Satisfied, she caught sight of the jewelry store and was promptly absorbed with the pretty things in the window. Smiling, he brought her closer so she could press her face and hands against the glass. _Now, what to do with you, little one…_ If he was going to meet Hinata at their secret place he couldn't take Hizumi with him --by his own order she was not to leave the Village gates without at least three shinobi escorting her.

He was just settling on dropping her off with the servants back at the clan house when a chorus of excited children's voices interrupted his thoughts. He barely had time to turn before he was mobbed by a crowd of eager young kids around the age of five or six --first-year Academy students on a field trip.

Naruto found he had to laugh as every face tried to get his attention and all their hyper little voices competed so that he couldn't understand a word. Eventually, though, someone said the words 'Fire Cape' and that immediately captured the kids' attention; "Oh yeah, show us _that_ trick!" and "Yeah, show us again, Fire Cape!" and "Please, Fire Cape, pleeeease?"

Unprepared for the barrage of puppy-dog eyes, Naruto chuckled "Okay, okay," raising a cheer from his young fan club. "Up you go, Princess."

"Whee!" squealed Hizumi as he shifted her up onto his shoulders. His hands now free, Naruto assumed a focus position. Welling up chakra in his body, he sent it sliding down the length of his coat. It was a long white coat with flames rendered at his feet, nearly identical to the one his father used to wear; when the chakra reached the flames it activated the genjutsu-producing threads Hinata had woven into the fabric. Seeming to glow with its own light, the design came alive for the children in a captivating dance of fluid reds and golds, accompanied by a general murmur of wonder.

A moment later when he released the illusion, at least a couple voices cried, "Again, again!" among the confessions of crushes from the girls and declarations of idol-worship from the boys, all to a disjointed chant of "Fire Cape, Fire Cape!"

Up on his shoulders, Naruto felt Hizumi grab a big fist-full of his hair and pat his head a little harder than she meant to. "He's _**my**_ Daddy!" she proclaimed jealously, and he could picture her pouting face glaring down at the other kids.

Their sensei, a petite, dark-haired young woman who had been waiting patiently nearby, stepped forward. Trying hard to keep an even face, she said, "I'm sorry for the intrusion, sir, but" --She lost her grip on her professionalism and her grin slipped through-- "as soon as they saw the Lord Kage they just had to come and see you."

He shook his head. "Nah, no problem. It's my pleasure."

Her smile widened and she gave a hasty bow. "I know you're a busy man, so I'll get them out of your way now." Her words prompted a group groan.

Putting on a big, warm smile, Naruto knelt down. "Hey, you know I'd love to play with you all," he said soothingly, "and maybe I can later, but now it's time to listen to your sensei, okay?"

The class mumbled their collective assent and he straightened, eliciting another gleeful noise from his temporary hair ornament. As the teacher started to herd her charges away he had an idea and gestured for her to stop. "Hey, you're heading back to the Academy, aren't you?" The woman nodded, looking curious. Naruto reached up and pulled Hizumi from his shoulders. "Could I ask you to take my daughter along?"

The woman brightened and said, "Certainly," but Hizumi looked heartbroken and clung to his coat. "Noooooo, Daaaaaaaddyyyy!" she whined, burying her face.

The Hokage rolled his eyes and patted her head. "Hey, you know what, Zumi?" he began patiently. "It'll be noontime soon. That means your big brother will have a break from class."

Her face popped up instantly. "Really?!"

Her cute little pearly whites had gone from waterworks to twinkling excitement so fast Naruto had to chuckle. "Yeah," he said, "and I'm sure he'd love to eat lunch with you. Mommy will pick you up afterward, and if you were good for the teachers you can come play in my office, okay?"

"O-kay!" she burbled cheerfully. He handed her over to the teacher and she easily settled in on the woman's shoulder.

"Her brother's in Iruka-sensei's third-year class," he instructed. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

"It's my pleasure, sir," she responded coyly. Then she inclined her head respectfully and departed, her class falling into line behind her.

"See you later, Princess!" he called after his daughter.

"Bye-bye Daddy, I love you!" The other kids yelled back their own goodbyes as well.

The Hokage grinned, turned to his right, thought for only a moment longer, and headed into the jewelry store. After all, if he was going to spoil his daughter it was only fair that he spoiled her mother, right?

* * *

On his way to the northern gates, Naruto was strolling down a quiet lane when suddenly a short blond blur came flying around a corner and slammed into him. Naruto himself barely rocked on his heels, but the other body rebounded and landed solidly on the ground.

"Guh! Ow…" The boy grimaced, rubbing his sore backside. "Hey! Why don't you watch where you're going, you big jerk!" he griped.

The Hokage crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Funny. That's kind of like what I was thinking."

The younger blond did a double-take and paled. "D-Dad?!"

"Only my thought was more like, 'what are you doing here when you should be in school?' --**Again**."

"Ah, well, um…" Stammering nervously, Keidyan Uzumaki stood, brushed off his seat, and wiped his nose on his sleeve. His pants and jacket had begun the day blue with black and orange patches, but now dirt smudges and grass stains obscured much of the color. Twigs and leaves of some bush or hedge were tangled in his wild blond hair, and he'd been sweating long before bumping into exactly the wrong person. His pearly eyes twitched back and forth and he bit his lip as he always did unwittingly when he was making up a story.

"…Stink bombs," he said finally. He almost grimaced at his choice, but he tried to muster enthusiasm. "Yeah, somebody put a whole bunch of stink bombs in a piñata and pranked the whole Academy with it! The smell was so bad the teachers put on masks and a couple kids passed out and class let out and… and I… I was…" His father's stern, motionless stare made him waver. He bit his lip again. "Actually… it's… lunchtime, and I told Iruka-sensei I wanted to eat ramen with my Dad! 'Cuz my Dad is the coolest dad in the whole Village --in the whole world!"

Naruto snorted but couldn't resist smirking. "Nice try, you little suck-up, but I saw the time less than ten minutes ago. Your lunch break isn't for half an hour yet at least." Keidyan wilted at these words. The older blond sighed, uncrossed his arms and softened his expression. "Come on, Kei, tell me what really happened."

Keidyan drooped his head and fidgeted. Naruto said nothing and waited. Eventually his son took a deep breath, and exploded: "It's just not fair! The lessons are dumb and the questions are hard and Iruka-sensei always calls on me and I just --I just --ugh!"

"Hey, hey now…" Naruto knelt down and squeezed the boy's shoulder gently. "I understand. I know school is hard --believe it. I've been there too. It's okay. Just tell me what happened today, alright?"

Keidyan wouldn't meet his eye, but he nodded slowly. "…Sensei called me to the front of the class again. I used… 'a trick' to get out of the room. Iruka-sensei an' the guest speaker chased me in the streets, but I used my Byakugan to get away. I hid in the…"

Naruto was going to ask about the guest speaker, but the point about the Byakugan captured his attention. As Keidyan continued his story he started making wild motions with his hands and more importantly quit drooping his head. Naruto half-listened, but focused on his son's eyes. …No change; they still looked just like a Hyuuga's. A familiar frustration arose, but he managed to keep it from his face. Naruto's father-in-law had managed to prevent the Hyuuga from placing the Caged Bird Seal on Hinata and their children on the condition that a new bloodline trait, a new _kekke-genkai_, would emerge. So far, however, it appeared that Keidyan and Hizumi had merely inherited their mother's eyes, and Hiashi was beginning to catch a lot of heat for it; most of his clan had been extremely displeased with his bargain in the first place.

Keidyan was just wrapping up with their recent encounter when a new voice rang out: "A-ha! I have found you, Uzumaki!"

The older quickly rose to his feet, senses alert. The younger merely groaned. When a familiar-looking bowl cut came jogging into view around the corner, however, Naruto let himself go slack. "Lee?"

Rock Lee jerked to a stop, surprise evident on his face as well. "Naruto? I did not expect to see you here!"

The Hokage snorted. "That makes two of us." Then he frowned. "Wait, didn't expect me? What do you want then?"

"Iruka-sensei asked for my assistance detaining a certain rambunctious escapee." He pointed at Keidyan, who was peering out from behind his father's legs just far enough to smile weakly.

Naruto put his hand on the boy's head. "Oh, I see. You were the guest speaker, huh?" His frown deepened. "Hang on. We're a good long way from the Academy, Lee. How exactly did my seven-year-old son manage to get away from you?"

Lee hesitated, then clapped his hand on the other man's shoulder and pulled him into a huddle a few steps away. He spoke conspiratorially, as if what he had to say was top secret. "As you know, with the eyes that he possesses Keidyan is one slippery young shinobi already."

The Hokage nodded. "Speaking of which…" He raised his voice and turned his head a fraction of a degree. "Don't even think about it, Kei! You've never beaten _me_ at hide-and-seek." A noise of disgust sounded over their shoulders followed by a small _thump_ as Keidyan dropped off the fence. Naruto motioned for Lee to continue.

"Of course, with my superior speed and experience I was easily able to catch up with him almost immediately. But then! I lowered my guard at a crucial moment and allowed myself to be taken in by one of your favorite taijutsu techniques and temporarily incapacitated!"

"Incapacitated! By taijutsu? _You_?" exclaimed Naruto aloud. He threw a shocked look back at his son; what technique could the boy have possibly imitated to best Bushy Brows? Guessing what they were talking about, Keidyan sheepishly clasped his hands together and pantomimed a jabbing motion with the first two fingers of each hand extended.

Naruto tilted his head in confusion. At the moment realization struck him he nearly burst out laughing, but didn't because the idea was just too absurd. As it was, he turned a barely controlled expression of sheer amusement on the other ninja. "_That_ jutsu. You're telling me that you fell for the--"

"Yes!" shouted Lee, breaking the huddle. "It is my shame to admit that I, Rock Lee, Handsome Devil of the Hidden Leaf Village, was defeated by the Secret Finger Jutsu: Thousand Years of Pain once again!" He raised a trembling fist up at the sun, and fire blazed in his eyes. "This was the third such occurrence, so I will make it my solemn promise that there will not be a fourth!" He whirled on Naruto and leveled a pointing finger. "Fortune dictated that we should meet here today! As my eternal rival, you are aware that it is my turn to challenge you to a contest of my choice."

Naruto put a hand to his face tiredly. "Ugh… Lee, _now_?"

The taijutsu master spun about again and continued as though he hadn't heard. (And he probably hadn't.) "However! If even the son of my glorious rival can defeat me, clearly I am not worthy to make that challenge! I must redouble my training, refine my exercises, and become even stronger! Ten-thousand push-ups! Twenty-thousand jump ropes! Four thousand laps around…"

As Lee continued shadow boxing and spouting absurd training regimen, the Hokage inched away to stand next to his son. His proximity made Keidyan uncertain and a little uncomfortable at first, but then Naruto surreptitiously held out his hand, palm up. A sly smirk and a wink were all the boy needed to see to grin and slap it. Father cracked first, and immediately both were clutching their sides with laughter. The older blond tussled the younger's hair, causing him to squirm and shove the hand away, laughing harder all the while. As they died down to weak chuckles father and son regarded each other and shared a warm smile.

"Well, well. I should have guessed I'd find the Uzumaki men together."

Keidyan jumped a foot or two, but Naruto merely wiped his eye, turned and extended his hand. "Good to see you, Iruka-sensei."

His old mentor smiled and took the shake. "You too, Naruto --I mean, _Lord Hokage_." Iruka nudged the other man's shoulder, then turned a tight-lipped look downward. "Of course, I wish this meeting was under better circumstances…" Keidyan shrank under the instructor's gaze, looking away and muttering something under his breath.

"Yeah, so I've heard," said Naruto wryly. "Was it all right for you to leave your class for this?"

"Well, when Lee didn't come back right away, I thought our little prankster here might've pulled something." He glanced over at the taijutsu master and shook his head; Lee was occupied doing push-ups while standing on his hands. "Since I'm familiar with all your old tricks, I figured I better come take a look. There isn't much left before the break, so my student teacher agreed to take over until then." Iruka diverted his attention to his wayward student. "That means we're all set to have a little talk that will carry into lunchtime if it has to," he said firmly.

Keidyan said nothing but stared at his feet and scuffed the dirt a little. Deciding to put a little more spring in the boy's step, Naruto knelt down next to him and said, "You know, Kei, just before you bumped into me I sent your sister over to the Academy to see you."

Keidyan's face snapped up, eyes wide with horror. "What?! B-but, if she's there and I'm not and she doesn't find me, then she'll-- then she'll--"

"She'll cry," agreed his father grimly. "She'll bawl her little pearly whites out."

"I gotta get back there, and fast!" He shoved his way past them and turned about frantically, trying to pick out the direction. "Oh man, oh man…"

"Keidyan, wait!" Lee appeared beside the boy so swiftly he seemed to shimmer into existence. He flashed his nice guy smile. "Climb on my shoulders, and I will get you to the Academy in no time!"

Relieved, the young Uzumaki leapt onto his back. "Thank you thank you thank you, sensei! And, um, sorry about the ambush, a-and all… Are you okay?"

Lee flashed another smile and a thumbs-up over his shoulder. "Do not worry about it --I am certain that lamppost sustained more damage than my head. Ready? Hold on ti--" The rest of the word cut off because Lee was instantly out of earshot.

The two remaining men watched pedestrians dive out of the way in the distance (they needn't have bothered, Lee was better than that) and chuckled. Naruto turned a quirked eyebrow on his mentor and asked, "Guest speaker, huh?"

Iruka nodded. "There was another lesson on genjutsu today. We've taught the kids about the standard ways to dispel illusions, but we've also made it clear that not all of them will be skilled at those methods. Lee volunteered to come and speak about how someone like him deals with genjutsu."

"Genjutsu, huh? No wonder Kei felt like bolting."

"Like father, like son," agreed Iruka. This time it was his turn to glower at his former pupil. "Speaking of which, remember when I mentioned your old tricks? He tried to use your favorite nose-bleeder to escape today."

Naruto paled. "Wh-what? I never taught him that!"

"…No, I believe you didn't. He's young enough that his transformations are still sloppy, but even then the image was wrong --it was clear that he was guessing. I don't think he's ever seen one of those magazines or the like. He wound up using a smoke pellet to make his getaway."

The younger man shook his head earnestly. "Sensei, I haven't even _mentioned_ that jutsu since Hinata and I started _dating_ all those years back. I don't know where he would've…" Suddenly he closed his eyes and let his head tip back. "…Konohamaru," he hissed.

Iruka nodded sagely. "It's what you get for teaching it to him in the first place."

"Yeah, yeah…" Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just, please, don't tell Hinata? I've never had the guts to bring up that particular prank." His wife very seldom got upset with him, but when she did she had a wickedly unbearable Silent Treatment.

"As long as he never does the real thing I'll let you deal with it. I trust you'll speak with Konohamaru as well?"

The Hokage waved dismissively. "I'll put him on the list of Suspect Baby-Sitters."

The instructor smiled and turned to go. "All right then. I'd better be getting back for that talk."

"Sensei, wait." Iruka turned back to see Naruto wearing a serious expression. "…How's he doing? Really?"

Iruka could see the concern in his old pupil's eyes, so he took a step closer and thought hard for a moment. The corner of his lip turned down in frustration and he shook his head slowly. "…I just don't understand it," he sighed. "When Keidyan first came to the Academy two years ago he was full of promise and eager attitude. He tackled every new lesson like he didn't know how to give less than his best. He didn't always succeed at first, but he just kept trying until he got it right. He really was the heart of the class, in short a perfect student --he told me his dream was to be a great ninja like his father." Naruto's features softened.

Iruka grimaced. "But then this year… It's like he's a completely different boy. This was his third escape attempt this week. He sleeps in class, ignores his assignments, goofs off during lessons and practice…"

"Just like me," murmured the Hokage.

But Iruka shook his head. "No, it's more than that. You at least were eager to _try_. You threw your best effort at things when I asked you to, which is why you turned it into a prank when you failed. Your shortcomings were all conceptual." He focused intently on a hand he held up, fingers flexing as if grasping at something elusive. "Kei can learn the material, I know he can. And he's got the talent to make it work --I've seen it. He just…" The teacher blew out a frustrated breath and dropped his hand to his side. "He's so reluctant to _attempt_ anything. Every time I ask him to do an exercise or demonstration I can see in his face he's convinced he will fail. He's lost his confidence somehow, and I can't figure out how to help him reclaim it."

Naruto blinked twice and nodded slowly, mirroring his sensei's sour expression. Both men sank into thought. A strong breeze sliced through the silence and stirred the leaves at their feet. As that sound died away a mockingbird began to sing from a branch overhead, drawing the Hokage's attention.

He listened to the song for a handful of seconds before sighing aloud. "All right, well, thanks for telling me, sensei." Iruka likewise shook himself out of his musings and nodded. "One last thing: his Byakugan. Has it…?"

The instructor shook his head again. "No new developments. He's got the near-360 vision, but no piercing sight or ability to see chakra networks. Neji worked with him individually last week and reported he doesn't think it likely Keidyan will ever develop those abilities."

"Well, that's something, I guess. The Hyuuga are practically chomping at the bit with their Caged Bird nonsense. Hiashi's keeping them in check, but he's told me pretty much the only card he's got left is that our Byakugan is incomplete. Expanded vision isn't that unique, so as long as the kids don't get the Hyuuga's rarer stuff we should be fine…"

"…but a new _kekke genkai_ would still be ideal," finished Iruka, nodding agreeably. "I understand." He gave a small shrug. "I'm still holding out for a late bloom."

Naruto put on a chagrined smirk. "We all are." He threw a glance up at the sun and grinned. "I need to get going. Thanks for the talk, Iruka-sensei."

* * *

Somewhere north of the Hidden Leaf Village a little ways there was an isolated clearing. It was not that far off the beaten path, just far enough to be out of the way. It was not impossible to find, just hard enough to be private: turn off the road at the tree with the curious double-knotted trunk; climb up the massive log fallen against the ridge; find your way to the creek bed and follow it.

This private clearing was not all that different from any other open patch in the forest, except that this particular patch was a patchwork of countless flowers: purple pansies and pink-white laurels; red clover and vivid violets; a sunburst of orange poppies and goldenrod; wild roses of every hue.

And in the midst of all the splendor, humming softly to herself, sat the most beautiful flower of all. Naruto stayed where he was for a while and fed his eyes with her image. Her robes were blue and white with an orange belt and fire-patterned hems, and they pooled like water where she knelt. The spiral symbol --their family crest-- sat at the center of a stylized sun between her shoulders, resembling the sunflower she was planting. Her hands were pale and delicate, and he envied the dirt she worked with her fingers. Finished with her work, she stood and brushed a lock of her long velvet hair back behind her ear, affording him a glimpse at her cheek.

Unable to stay away any longer, Naruto waded into the flowers and called softly, "Hey there, Lady."

Hinata Uzumaki turned toward him, and he felt a jolt of electricity at her smile. "Hey," she called back just as softly. For several shared heartbeats they were still, staring and smiling in silence.

Back when they had first returned from their honeymoon, the first villager to see them had greeted them as 'Lord and Lady Uzumaki'. Hinata had blushed profusely; they had been under aliases on that blissful trip, so it was her first time hearing her new title. Naruto had of course picked up on her reaction and laughed. It amused him so much that 'Lady' was her nickname from that day on. She still blushed a little every time he used it, but Hinata didn't mind in the least. The name was a wonderful reminder; every time she heard 'The Lady' or 'Lady Uzumaki' --or her favorite, '_My_ Lady'-- it was a confirmation that she was his, and he was hers.

Some invisible force pulled him toward her, and when he reached her it attracted their lips. Several seconds later they pulled apart far enough to share breath as they murmured to each other. Sorry he was late. Yes, she'd known he was there. She liked letting him watch. Did she know she was making the flowers jealous. Did he enjoy making her blush.

Undoubtedly. Another kiss.

* * *

Two gleaming yellow eyes watched the meeting with mixed reactions. Half of him held the couple in quiet admiration one moment, then reviled their affection in disgust the next moment. The other half maintained a collective detached indifference, unable to comprehend the emotions it saw and unwilling to care.

Regardless, now that the Fox was here, it was time to begin. The targets turned their backs and bent to examine the sunflower.

_Heeeeeheee… Smelling the flowers, Uzumaki? He-heh, heh-hee… We'd be careful if we were you…_

…_You never know when they are going to be… unpleasant._

Neither of them saw the root creeping toward the lady's ankle…

* * *

(End)

* * *

So. Have I hooked you yet? ;P

Obviously, I'll get my first chance to do another battle scene next update. I learned a lot from Trial by Leaves, and I'm going to try and put it all to good use. There's an important poll on my profile concerning update length and frequency, so please give me some feedback before you go. (Feel free to, y'know, drop me a review as well. Kinda need those and stuff.)

See you all next time!

~ArcTheJedi


	2. Smoke

Whew! Finally got this chapter done. This took me a little longer than I thought it would --I've been thinking I was on the last day of writing for about a week now-- but I'm pretty happy with it all. The battle in particular is longer than I pictured it but it's my best effort so far, so hopefully I've improved on my past attempts to write combat.

Ironically, I was worried about length for a while; most of June had gone by and I was concerned that I wouldn't even hit 6000 words; then this week I easily passed 7500 and I started thinking I was making it too _long_. There were actually two more scenes I was going to put in this chapter, but one I decided to save for later and the other got pushed to the beginning of Chapter 3.

But I could ramble on about my writing decisions all day, and I'm sure you'd rather just get to reading. Tell me what you think, okay?

Anonymous Reviews:

-**jovi** (1st): Well thanks! I'm glad you liked Trial by Leaves, and I especially appreciate the praise on character portrayal --one of the things I try to stick to most is staying in character. D'oh! (facepalms) As dumb as it sounds, I'd actually forgotten about Gaara. Thanks for the early reminder --I'll definitely remember to fit him in this story somewhere.  
-**jovi** (2nd): Ooh, actually, I'm afraid I'd already planned against both of those pairings (as you'll see this chapter). Thank you for the suggestions, though, and sorry I can't follow through on them.

**Disc-lamer: Oh, I don't know about that --discs have pretty much beaten out cartridges and cassettes by now, don't you think? I mean sure, they smudge easier, but... Huh? Ohhhh, _Disclaimer!_ Why didn't you say so?**

**I own nothing.  
**

* * *

"Oh, not you too…" Naruto rolled his eyes --and his head, to exaggerate it. "Look, like I told Iruka-sensei, I haven't even _thought_ about that jutsu since--how do you know about that jutsu?" His tone flowed from exasperation to sheepish embarrassment seamlessly.

Hinata paused digging in the loamy soil to throw him a cool look. "I was three rows back and one seat to the left when you invented it." He lurched a little and she laughed lightly. "I still remember the mess Sensei made. You were extremely popular that day with the other boys in the class."

The Hokage chuckled and plunked a few seeds into the holes. "Yeah… I think that was the day I made Sakura and the rest of the girls decide to hate me though."

"Well…" His wife smiled coyly. "Not _all_ the girls." It was a rare occasion that she turned the tables on him, but blush he did (through his goofy grin). He dropped his head for a moment, then reached over and kissed her so at least they'd be the same hue.

As they resumed their work, Naruto picked up where he'd left off. "So anyway, I told Iruka-sensei I would 'have words' with Konohamaru, and try to find out what's up with Kei."

Hinata's brow knit as she dug. "It's so strange… He's so much like you --especially now with these pranks-- but that makes his confidence problem seem even more alien. Hizumi has described him practicing at home, but never where I can watch him, and I have noticed he doesn't talk about school. I don't know what's gotten into him, do you?"

"Not a clue." He ruefully shook his head as he reached for the next flower he'd brought. "I'm going to have a father-son talk with him tonight. …Heh. We'll see if I'm any good at this 'fatherly advice' stuff."

"Well, if you can't get through to him I'm sure you'll just keep trying until you do. He can be stubborn, but so can you." She patted the dirt with finality before caressing the purple tulip's bud and breathing deep of its fragrance. "Like father, like son after all."

Naruto mirrored her smile faintly. "I guess." He shook himself. "So you don't mind picking up Zumi?"

"Not at all. That was a good idea --Hizumi loves spending time with Keidyan, and she always cheers him up."

He nodded and handed her another plant. "I told her she could come with you to my office if she behaved herself."

She laughed. "Oh yes, she won't make focusing on paperwork hard at all. ~I-see-through-you~" she sang, and she didn't need to look to know he was rolling his eyes. She reigned in her teasing tone and said matter-of-factly, "…You spoil her, you know."

Naruto threw a cool look and a derisive snort her way. "Oh, and you don't?"

Suddenly all mirth dropped from his face. There, to the side, just out of sight--

Hinata drew herself up imperiously. "I'm allowed; I'm her mo--_Aiee!!_"

She fell as something pulled her foot hard out from under her. One of her flailing arms landed in her husband's hand; Naruto gave a step to bleed off momentum --and the moment his heel landed he flicked his other wrist _once-twice_. Whatever it was --a snake maybe?-- tried to flex away from the shuriken, but the second dart exploded into a spray of metal. The instant tension on her heel severed Naruto lifted, using her return jerk to plant Hinata back on her feet. She had not touched the ground.

"Are you all right," a short nod and "_**Byakugan!**_" were all they had time for before they were back to back, surrounded by grotesque slavering plant-like fiends.

Naruto jerked to the right as a thorny maw blurred past his face; his left hand drew a kunai and slashed its stem in a single motion. Just as the kunai made a second hole in the bulbous 'head' of the next creature in line he caught the falling remains of the first and lashed it across a third stalk, ripping it apart. He flicked his wrist back and stuffed his makeshift weapon into the jaws of a fourth attacker. In his right hand he caught a gator-like flytrap just below its open mouth. An abrupt wrench ended its struggles; just then he felt Hinata move at his back and dodged as a spear-thorned vine stabbed over their shoulders. Naruto clapped his dead flytrap over it and bit it in half.

It was roughly that point when the horde of savage plants turned more of their collective attention on the lady, presumably in hopes of an easier target --another tactical error. Initially Hinata had had difficulty repelling the monstrosities; their chakra networks were thick and pulsing but so alien from human structure she could not find nodes to close off; a Gentle Fist strike dealt damage, but the verdant, mutating tissue merely grew out and adapted. Less than a minute into the fray, however, she leveled her hands; expelling chakra from her fingertips instead of her palms turned them into ethereal knives, and Hinata began to kill the fiends with even more surgical ease than her husband. A quick jab, and all the chakra flow severed across a stalk. A small flick of the wrist, and she garrote another monster; she didn't even have to touch it.

So when her opponents literally 'grew' in number the mass of corpses at her feet merely piled faster --compost for her flowers. Left, right, jab, then slash. Backhand slap, two-finger stab. Dodge, deflect --_riposte_. Duck--_twist_, high sweeping kick. All the while she kept her back to Naruto's, his torso in her blind spot. With her Byakugan she timed and placed her strikes precisely while simultaneously watching for threats from behind, using their contact to warn him in turn; they knew each other's movements so well they instinctively understood what each subtle shift represented and how to move in response.

Naruto felt Hinata's robe tangle around his foot. Rather than resist, he let her pull it back and dropped crouching to his knee as she twirled away. At that instant another set of sap-dripping fangs snapped together where their heads had been. Two slashes --one metal, one chakra-- and more pieces of vegetation _thumped_ to the ground.

They ended their maneuver facing each other. They spared a moment for a mutual once-over before taking in the fresh wave of mutant plants already nearly grown around them. Each noticed their flowers sinking into the earth right before new abominations sprouted.

_Oh forget this…_ thought Naruto, beginning to suffer minor irritation. Thin-lipped, he asked, "Honey? May I have this dance?"

She smirked.

Collecting herself, Hinata drew a measured breath and held her arms straight. Gathering chakra in her outward-facing palms, she swung her arms in wide arcs, tracing trails of shimmering blue light. Her form was flawed and imperfect; the chakra wasn't concentrated enough to linger long, and because every arc intersected the point directly overhead there were several gaps in her pattern. Naruto exploited her movements to skirt around within her defense, firing shuriken through the openings to repel monsters looking to do the same. More than one creature slammed against the coarse chakra beams and gnashed their thorny teeth --stopped, but barely.

As she picked up speed, Hinata began to step around him as well, placing her footsteps in his fractions of seconds after he left them. Naruto twisted around, under, over her until they worked themselves into a frenzy of motion, a blur of two bodies no longer distinguishable. At that point he ceased firing and created a Rasengan, but he expanded the ball of energy too far as he added wind chakra, hollowed it out and disturbed the flow. Once it was suitably unstable, he raised it above their heads.

One of Hinata's hands brushed the sphere --and the chakra trailing it _exploded_ outward in a wave of devastation screaming through the air. Even before the sound could register another wave lashed out --and another, and another! As she siphoned energy from the sphere she channeled his destructive force through her grace, and two seemingly clumsy techniques became a brilliant sphere of destruction, ripping earth and foe alike asunder.

Moments later the light faded, and Naruto and Hinata came to a stop, hands clasped and slightly winded. A spider web of smoldering trenches furrowed the ground around them, rapidly filling with a fine rain of sap and fist-sized chunks of vegetation.

And yet _still_, even before the last of it hit and began to sizzle, more of the flowers further out sank and more knobby, grotesque stalks appeared. In fact, they grew in greater number than they had yet been, which should have rendered all of their efforts pointless.

Except they weren't. Staring into her eyes, Naruto asked, "Have you spotted him?"

She nodded. "Oak tree, edge of the field, ten o'clock. He's melded with the trunk."

"Can you handle yourself here?"

"I believe so. Be careful…"

A kiss. "I'll leave a couple clones just in case."

The assault began anew on his wife and two doppelgangers as the Hokage tore through the ranks and went on the offensive. When he drew close to the edge of the field a forest of slender vines erupted before him, but he didn't even slow down. Drawing a kunai in one hand and a concealed short-edge in the other, he focused chakra on the weapons and used a trick from the late Asuma-sensei to extend their blades. Thus armed, he plowed into the thick of the vines, ignoring their feeble attempts to constrict him as he carved meters clear with every slash. A whirling dervish of blades, Naruto lost no momentum clearing a direct path.

Within seconds his target came into view, and he had a glimpse of gleaming yellow eyes and a toothy smirk before he hurled the short-edge. The huge flytrap engulfing his foe snapped shut and sank into the bark in a fraction of the second before the weapon embedded itself. Before friction had time to stop the blade Naruto landed on the trunk, pulled it free and leapt toward the next tree over, where the enemy had reappeared. He understood now why his foe wore only a smirk; if the pale half of his face was not impassive it would have been a sadistic grin. The other shinobi vanished from the second tree as well, but this time meter-long spines exploded out of the trunk. Twisting midair, Naruto released a controlled burst of chakra from his feet to jerk out of his flight path. When he hit he rolled, back on his feet and dashing forward the moment his heels hit.

He gritted his teeth; recognizing his enemy had brought back some bad memories. Zetsu had resurfaced a ways into the field, waiting for him with that twisted half-grin. Just as Naruto reached him, the hulking plant convulsed and spouted a sickly green cloud. The blond cursed and leapt back, flicking his kunai forward. The metal grew soft and wavy immediately, but before the acid could dissolve it completely--

_**Boom!**_

The cloud billowed suddenly as smoke blasted out its core. A moment later the smoke parted as the Hokage sailed through it lengthwise like a tunnel.

Zetsu was there to greet him with open jaws, but Naruto created a duplicate and springboarded off his back. The original performed a flip, scattering a spray of pellets as the flytrap eviscerated the clone. There was a small puff signaling its demise, but this clone was not made from nothing; there was another sharp report and flash of light, and Zetsu's trap wretched and gushed smoke, its leaves wilting. As Naruto landed the dozen smoke pellets he'd thrown went off in sequence. He took a charging step toward a still-reeling Zetsu but a bank of off-color flowers between them fired a spray of needles. The Hokage spun, and the darts snagged in the weave of his long coat. Continuing the spin he blinded Zetsu with the cape and landed a solid punch through the fabric.

The plant ninja's skin reflexively released a puff of spores directly in Naruto's face. He stumbled back, blinking furiously as the world swam out of focus and colors began to invert. Recognizing the danger, Naruto drew a small chemical vial and smashed it against his chin. The potent smell and the sting of the glass effectively cleared his head and shattered the genjutsu.

A quick glance told him his foe had taken his seconds of delirium to vanish into the surrounding fog of smoke --not hard to do considering how thick he'd laid it down. He emptied his pouch of smoke pellets. Five left… close, but doable. After checking the grain of the grass at his feet, Naruto straightened and raised his voice.

"Y'know, if I remember correctly, smoke does some really unpleasant things to plants." Voice nonchalant, he casually flicked one of the pellets into the unseen. "Of course, I hate to do this to our garden of all these lovely flowers, but sometimes the _weeds_ are just too _annoying_." He let edge drift into his tone, shifted a few degrees and shot another. Still nothing. _Come on, I know at least half of you can get pissed off._ He shifted some more and let contempt breed a smirk on his face. "How does that feel, Zetsu? To know you are nothing more than a weed to be pulled up and tossed away --a grass stain to be wiped off my coat?" He fired again.

Almost instantly the activated pellet came zipping back out of the darkness. Naruto snagged it out of the air and dashed the way it came, swatting aside the feeble monster Zetsu raised on realizing his mistake. The Hokage was upon him instantly, throwing more smoke in his face. Zetsu lurched away reflexively, and a wall of sickly vines grew between them. Naruto merely smirked and tugged on a ninja thread; the short edge he'd discarded came cartwheeling through the air. Chakra fed over the line lengthened its blade, and it sliced through first Zetsu's roots and then his flimsy curtain before landing in its master's hand. Naruto sheathed the trusty knife and strode forward.

The plant ninja tried desperately to regrow and meld into the ground, but in his debilitated state he was much too slow. Naruto flew through a series of hand signs and slapped his palm to the dirt, and the very earth Zetsu sank his roots into cragged up above ground level and petrified, trapping him in place.

* * *

She sidestepped and spun, jabbing the plant at the base of its 'neck' as it lunged past. It screeched and fell to the ground.

Hinata shifted subtly, moving her Byakugan's blind spot and carefully examining her expanded vision. Convinced that she had just slain the last of the attackers, she and her husband's clones relaxed. There had been a very significant number of them, but once the fiends had stopped regrowing (she assumed at the point Naruto had engaged their creator) the three of them had made short work of the crowd. She threw a concerned glance over at the massive cloud of smoke across the field before turning her attention on the doppelgangers. "I will go help Naruto. You two return to the Village and tell them what's happened. You report to the gate watch, you to the ANBU compound. Understood?" They nodded and leapt to follow orders. Hinata turned back and took a step, but a wave of fatigue overcame her and she staggered.

If she had not dropped her guard, she might have seen the sunflower behind her sink toward the ground, its petals rotting away, its bud caving in on itself…

* * *

The Hokage straightened, only anger evident on his face now. That emotion, both halves understood. "It's been over ten years now. I thought I was finally in the clear. Your group doesn't even _exist_ anymore, Zetsu. I smashed your leader years ago --_you_ never had a prayer attacking both of us like this." His eyes hardened. "So why? _Why_ do you keep coming after me?!"

The smoke was starting to clear. As his roots began to break down his stone prison, Zetsu's crazed half lit up in a feral grin, but the pale side spoke first. "You poor simpleton. Whoever said…"

"…we were after _you_, stupid fool-Fox!" That side reveled in the horror dawning on Uzumaki's face.

The boy whirled. "_**Hinata!**_"

* * *

The instant she heard his call she reactivated her Byakugan--

--just before the hulking plant engulfed her.

* * *

The cold lump in Naruto's gut froze. "_**HINATA!!**_" Without thought he drew a curious three-pronged shuriken and hurled it. Faster than even shinobi eyes could track he blurred through a pattern of signs --and vanished so fast his image seemed to flash.

The split-second the monster needed to straighten and vanish into the earth proved to be an eternity too long; when the Hokage reappeared he seized the plant in one chakra-pulsing hand and by sheer force wrenched its bulbous bulk out at the root. Sweeping one arm back he caught the shuriken he'd thrown and used it to tear a gash in the sac wall. Hinata spilled out through the gap into his lap, and he inspected her worriedly.

She sputtered a few coughs, she was covered in some sort of sappy slime, and she looked surprised to say the least, but she seemed okay. The lump in his stomach melted. Naruto shivered, and held his wife close.

With a shaky smirk and a shaky voice he said, "I think we need to move our garden inside the gates, okay?"

* * *

The stone had broken, but Zetsu remained rooted in place by shock and anger. "That… That was--"

"The secret technique of the Leaf Village's Yellow Flash? Yeah."

The rogue shinobi spun, cursing and reaching for his plants--

He felt his roots slashed out from under him again. When he pitched forward he was caught around the neck in an iron grip, face to face with two Naruto Uzumakis. These were not the ones from earlier; he hadn't even seen the Shadow Clone sign.

In the couple seconds he had left Zetsu saw the shadows shifting in the trees over the blond's shoulder. The brat-girl landed on a closer branch and took the time to smile down at him and wave snidely before disappearing. Both eyes widened and his mouth opened in a symmetric snarl. _They __**lied**__ to us!_

"Let's show you another of my favorites." The other clone stood, and Zetsu had a glimpse of a swirling blue ball ringed with blades before it struck his face.

_**Rasenshuriken!**_

* * *

His wife held protectively in his arms, the real Hokage approached the smoldering patch of turf. He curled his lip in disgust at the messy remains of his old foe and spoke coldly. "When you see the rest of your _Akatsuki_ devils--" he spat the words like venom "--be sure to tell them who sent you." He turned and walked back toward the Village.

Still bridal-style in his arms, Hinata spoke up. "U-um, N-Naruto?" She blushed. "I-I'm fine, r-really. You c-can put me d-down now."

He hitched and glanced down at her; her robes were still damp, her hair was matted, and she'd lost a shoe to that… thing. He turned his eyes resolutely forward. "Don't wanna," he pouted, playfully stone-faced.

A smile spread on her face, and she snuggled into his arm. "Hee…" A moment later she felt him jerk to a stop and looked up at him quizzically. "N-Naruto? Naruto, what's wrong?"

He pointed back toward the Village. "Smoke."

* * *

When the two of them arrived in the schoolyard, the Lady wasted no time dashing through the door. Naruto lingered only long enough to flip over his old favorite swing under the tree. He swore and dropped it, hurrying after Hinata. A while after he'd mastered Flying Thunder he'd had the idea to place a network of Seals in the critical areas of the Village; the one here at the Academy was destroyed, as he feared.

Once inside, the building felt abandoned, empty. That was unsettling but expected; the instructors' first duty in the event of an attack was to get their kids to the safe zones. He caught up with Hinata two hallways in at a dead run. They had both plotted the column of smoke against their mental layout and knew exactly where to go.

When they came around the corner they nearly tripped on a crumpled body. To his alarm Naruto recognized her as the young teacher he'd met in town that morning. He knelt and checked her vitals; she was in shock and under a potent genjutsu, but alive. He let out a small breath and looked up to see his wife down the hall a ways, rooted by fear. Her voice was hoarse. "This is… This is…"

He glanced at the room number and cursed again. In his haste he merely tore the door out of the wall. "Iruka-sensei! Where are you?!" A wave of heat washed over him and he winced against the soot in the air. Naruto saw the source of the smoke immediately; a large chunk of the far wall and ceiling had been cored out and several meters of desk lay smashed in a pile of ash and burning timber. He stepped into the room and quickly swirled wind energies in his palm, collecting the soot and dust and smoke in a funnel. Hinata released a blast of chakra from her hands, blowing it all out the hole and snuffing the flames.

A wet cough drew their attention to the front corner of the room. Naruto jolted and Hinata gasped. "Iruka-sensei!!" Unlike his colleague's, Iruka's wounds were much more apparent and serious; there were so many gashes his Chunin jacket hung in ribbons, and at least three were deeper than flesh --it was not smoke that made him cough. Naruto glanced at his wife. "_Hinata._" She jerked and nodded, drawing on her chakra and beginning to close the wounds.

Another cough, weaker this time. Ignoring the blood, Naruto cushioned Iruka's head with one hand and lightly slapped it with the other. "C'mon, sensei," he said, soft but stern. "C'mon! Hang in there!"

The older man's eyes fluttered. Cracked open, barely. "…N…Naru…to…"

Naruto exaggerated his nod. "Yeah, sensei, yeah, it's me. I'm here."

"Me too, sensei," murmured Hinata, her brow knit in concentration.

"…'m…sorry, I…I couldn't--" His eyes mashed closed and a wave of tension rolled over him, forcing another fit of coughs. More blood dribbling from his lips. Hinata hurried to restrain him.

"No no no, it's okay, it's okay!" said Naruto quickly. "Don't strain yourself." He forced a smile. "Come on sensei, this is basic medic stuff," he joked. "You _teach_ this. Calm down, don't tense."

Slowly, Iruka relaxed, his breathing back to steady. Hinata slumped a little. "That's all I can do," she explained, face pinched with worry. "I'm not a medic. If I try to do more I might impede their work."

Naruto nodded slowly. Iruka cracked his eyes again. "Naruto… Hinata…" he rasped. "I'm sorry… I couldn't, couldn't save them…"

Both parents felt a wave of cold down their spines. "What do you mean?" breathed Naruto. "Save who? What happened?"

"Must've… come from the Bolthole… struck from nowhere, and they…" He closed eyes that were tearing up and tried weakly to turn his face away. "…took Keidyan, and little Zumi."

Hinata gasped, threw her hands to her mouth. She whirled, searching the room frantically. "Keidyan! Hizumi?! _Kids, where are you?!_"

Iruka's tears flowed freely down his cheek, mingling with his blood. "Couldn't… couldn't stop them… Got away… Took the kids and, and… vanished…"

"_Nooo!!_" screamed Hinata. She collapsed to the floor, racking with sobs.

Naruto sat perfectly still. Silent. Iruka rolled his face back toward his pupil, a profound look in his features. "…Naruto… I just… I want you to know--"

But the younger man snapped out of his reverie. "Oh no you don't! I don't want to hear it --you've spoken enough for now!" He glanced at the teacher's desk beside them, guessed the correct height and punched through the wood, tearing out the box of medical supplies. "No 'last messages' for you, Iruka-sensei. Whatever you have to say, you tell me later when you've pulled through, you got that?" He dumped the box out and snatched the pill he was looking for. He seized his mentor's jaw and plopped the pill in his mouth, then held it shut. "Swallow that," he commanded, "and I'll see you _when_ you wake up."

Iruka obeyed. Several seconds later he went completely still except for some very gradual breathing; the pill effectively put him in a coma, slowing his heart and all his body processes to a minimum --it was an item of last resort for blood-loss victims.

Naruto set his head down gently, then turned and put a hand on his wife. "Hinata." …No response. She'd fainted. He pulled himself tiredly to his feet. He could chase after them himself, but he knew it would be pointless. These were probably infiltration specialists. The Bolthole was a secret tunnel that led up into the mountain, and they would leave almost no trail (if any) on that terrain. And the way he was feeling right now he seriously doubted he could track well enough.

A small sound made him turn, and for the first time he noticed the crowd of children peeking out from a flimsy barricade of chairs at the back of the room. A couple of the braver ones had half-emerged, hesitating as if unsure whether they should remain in hiding. His features softened and he took a step toward them and knelt. "It's okay, kids. It's all right now, you're safe."

"Fire cape…" They flooded out and rushed him with open arms, some shaking, all teary-eyed. He looped his arms around as much of the clump as he could and let them let it all out for a bit.

After a while they relaxed into individual sniffling and fidgeting. One voice spoke up and asked, "Hey, so uh, will Sensei be all right?"

"…Yeah, he'll be --don't look, don't look," he cautioned. "He'll be fine. He just needs to sleep for a bit, okay? He and Mrs. Uzumaki too, they're just sleeping." When he found the girl who'd spoken, she glanced down and away. Her expression was neutral, but she had hands stiff in her pockets and she scuffed the floor with a shoe. Still, she looked like she had the most composure right now, so he asked, "What's your name?"

"…Shikanami Nara."

"Nara, huh?" Now that he looked closer, he saw the resemblance. "Okay Shikanami, do you know how to get to the conference room near the front door?" One short jerk of a nod. "Good. I want you to take your class there and wait for a teacher to come get you, all right? Can you do that?" Another nod. She socked the crying blond boy next to her on the arm, tugged at another, pudgier boy, and the three of them herded the class out the door.

Naruto watched them go, careful to block their view of their sensei. When the last was out of sight, he counted a few beats before punching another hole in the desk. _Where is everyone?!_ Why weren't the medics here yet? Where were the response teams? Every second they wasted… His chin itched and he scratched it irritably. His nails came away flaked with his own dried blood and he realized his answer.

Just then Nara Senior appeared in the hole in the wall, a Black Ops squad at his back. Shikamaru grimaced and breathed a long, "Ah, drag." The ANBU medic and one other rushed to attend on Iruka.

The Hokage caught Shikamaru's eye and spoke coldly. "They've got my kids. Out the Bolthole. _Move_."

Mercifully silent, the other man just nodded and rushed through with the rest of the squad. There were fewer of them than there should have been. Naruto cursed again. The ANBU were spread thin enough monitoring the foreign spies when he himself had been attacked outside the Village walls. _Of course_ an attempt on the Hokage trumped a possible disturbance at the Academy. The entire battle with Zetsu had been a distraction.

The ANBU had apparently stabilized Iruka enough to move. They left with him almost before Naruto noticed. He found himself staring at a paper on the floor and realized it was a crayon drawing of stick figures: an impossibly tall man with a yellow spiky head, a woman with long purple hair, and a shorter blond holding hands with a little girl; a three-year-old's best effort at a family portrait. When he picked it up he realized one corner was charred away. It had been one of the things burning when he arrived.

Slowly, his hands curled into fists.

* * *

The young teacher was still fighting disbelief when he saw the door ripped from its hinges. He gaped as he stepped through and saw the destruction in Iruka-sensei's room.

"What in…" He caught sight of the figure standing at the hole in the wall. "Lord Hokage! What happened here?"

The Sixth stood facing away, some sort of paper crumpled in his hand. He didn't turn. "Stay with my wife until I return. If she wakes, tell her I'll be back soon."

"Sir? Where are you going?"

"I… have to get away for a few minutes. I'll be back soon." His voice was strained.

That was when the teacher noticed a few more things. "Your coat! Your hands! Sir, are you--"

"I'm fine! Just stay here and do as I say!"

"Forgive me, Lord Hokage, but if you've been attacked I shouldn't let you go alo--"

Uzumaki did turn his face then, just enough to fix one eye on him. The man's blood seemed to ice over in his veins. That eye burned with an unnatural fire. Black lines stood out on his cheek like scars, and that animal slit bored _through_ him and staked his heart to the floor. When he spoke the words smoldered with menace:

"_**Stay. HERE."**_

The younger man had to choke back the bile before he could dry-swallow. "Y-ye-- --yessir…"

Even after the Hokage was long gone out the window, it took several more minutes for the man's heart rate to come down --after it managed to start again, that is. He'd heard the stories --who hadn't?-- but he'd never call them exaggeration again…

* * *

It was approaching mid-afternoon when the air above the Leaf Village was shattered by a primal roar. It echoed off of every surface, rattled every window. To every person it sounded three feet away but its source was nowhere in sight.

It was a howl of rage. Mothers hugged their children. Veteran shinobi old enough to remember the sound paled. Apprehension seized everyone.

But the twenty or so scattered individuals who knew their leader best merely exchanged grim, knowing looks. They heard the human voice buried in the monstrous bellow. They heard the cry of pain within the scream of fury, and they knew what it meant:

Some very bad people were in for some very bad things.

* * *

Shikamaru stood over a map of the Leaf Village in a locked central room of the ANBU compound, and frowned his irritation.

"I don't care what you have to do," he grouched into the radio. "_Flirt_ with him if you have to --he seems to have a thing for redheads. Just keep him there until Shino can bug him." He punched over to another frequency. "Unit 9, we've let him look long enough. Take him."

A light lit up on the board. He hit the button-- "**Shikamaru!**" --and his wife's angry voice ripped through. "I was in the middle of picking out some new shoes when ANBU tore through here! I _demand_ to know what--"

Flick. "Gate patrol, talk to me." He waited a heartbeat, then flipped to the Incident Channel and listened to the chatter for a second. He hit another button. "Kiba, another hider to sniff out one block north of your position."

"Unit 4 checking in," crackled a voice over his headset. "We are still in pursuit of the shinobi that raided the Archives, but we are nearing the edge of comm range."

He nodded. "Keep pace with them, but watch your step. They're from Rain, so they'll probably try to shake you at the river. If they haven't by then, try harder to lose them and get back here." He reached up and twisted the knob to a new channel. "You can send someone to Ichiraku for the security blueprints, Udon --the fakes are almost to the border. Send 'em over to me, will you? Clearly I need to dink around with them." His tone dripped exasperation.

The two aides across the table were just as busy, taking as many calls and coordinating nearly as much action. Apart from the three of them, the building was nearly empty as almost every single agent fought to keep situations covert and under control. The operator currently on the IC nodded to herself and dropped another yellow marker on a map that practically had more markers than empty space.

His grimace deepening, Shikamaru checked the location and adjusted his headset back. "Unit 4, when you get back come by way of the 44th Training Ground --our Cloud pals are getting antsy." He was about to pick up the radio again when the ceiling panel above him flickered. He threw one lazy look upward, then languidly switched off his headset and dropped it on the tabletop.

He didn't even turn to greet the new arrival, preferring to keep his attention on the map. "Did your tantrum help?"

"Yeah. It helped."

He snorted sardonically. "Good. 'Cuz it's sure made my life more of a drag. You have any idea how troublesome it is maintaining order after _three_ freak disturbances? Our foreign friends are having a heyday and a half out there."

Behind him, the Hokage shrugged and said flatly, "I could vent my latent fury in town next time. See if that causes fewer problems."

Shikamaru snorted again. The aides added more friendly green markers to the map.

Naruto leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "What have you got?"

"Forensics and cleanup teams that hope they never see a dead plant again."

"I know the feeling. Have they found anything?"

"Aside from thorns, not much. There was about eight minutes, full of gaps, between the time you left and the time we moved Zetsu, but the point is the body was still there --I assume as you left it. Assuming he and our kidnappers were cooperating--"

"They were."

A small grim smile quirked Shikamaru's lip. "You know it and I know it. Anyway, the fact that Zetsu was not tampered with either means they're completely sure he's clean or they want us to follow them. We'll find out whether they're incompetent or just cocky--" He gestured at the map before him "--as soon as we clear up this mess."

Naruto grunted and moved to the table. "Any major problems out there?"

The lazy man twitched his head sideways. "It's been like a game of chess where all your pieces are kings, but we're making progress and we haven't taken any important hits." He smirked. "Of course, now that you're finally off your moody butt and in the fray I'm sure we'll be done in no time." The aides had been adding more and more friendlies to the map as reports of the Hokage's Shadow Clones poured in. A wall of green began advancing across the table, clearing off red and yellow markers as it found them.

Naruto watched the reproduction of his work for a moment before turning to Shikamaru. "When this is over I want you to personally take charge of the investigation."

"Oh, that's perfect. I get to pick through thorns and chloroplasmic soup just in time to go home late and have my florist wife take my head off."

"I'll send flowers to the funeral."

"Ooh. Wise guy." The blond returned the grim smile and moved away. Shikamaru finally turned. "Hey, Naruto. I'm sorry about Kei and Zumi. This all happened on my watch."

The other man just stared back at him for a minute… before exploding into smoke. Shikamaru turned back to the map and resumed his work.

* * *

At first, she thought she heard the welcome sound of her kids' laughter. Hinata smiled, trying to imagine what game they were playing.

"…ing…norm……ake…"

Their voices grew quieter, as if they were moving away. She frowned and turned her head to look for them. When she did she felt something soft against her cheek.

"Ah…ere we go. …coming round…ow."

Blackness. Suddenly Hinata realized her eyes were closed. When she tried to open them, everything was too bright and blurry.

One fuzzy shape moved and said, "Thank you, Doctor. You can go now." Another shape bobbed and moved away.

She squinted. "N-Naruto? Where…?" Her voice was hoarse.

The blur quickly resolved into the shape of her husband. He drew close and took her hand. "We're home. You've been out for a while, so I had a medic come and take a look at you. He couldn't find anything wrong with you."

Her memory kicked in and replayed the day's events for her, right up until-- She jerked. "The children! Naruto, Kei and Zumi-- --a-are they…?"

"Yes," he said gently, sadness in his eyes. "They're gone. Kidnapped."

Her head dropped back to the pillow, silent tears flowing from clenched lids. Naruto said nothing for a few moments and just stroked her hand. Eventually he did speak, low and soft. "…Hey. Look at me. We're going to get them back, okay?" He gave her a strong smile. "I don't know where they are, but I know where to start looking. We're going to get our kids back, Hinata, and then we're going to teach whoever these morons are what it means to mess with our family. Believe it."

Hinata sniffed and returned a shaky smile. Nodding mostly for herself, she pulled herself upright. "A-all right," she said. She took a deep breath. "Then let's get started."

He gave her a careful look. "Do you need to rest more?"

Her reddening cheeks frowned and she shook her head. "I've wasted enough time on heartbreak. Our son and daughter are out there somewhere and _not_ in this house. We need to fix that."

Naruto quirked a wry lip and gave her a quick kiss. They stood and he led her out into the hall. "I've already taken all the necessary steps," he was saying. "Packed up supplies for us both, made the arrangements with the staff for housekeeping, made my report to the Council, all of it. We'll leave as soon as we put together our team."

With that they entered their home's reception room, where all available of the Leaf Twelve were gathered. The moment the two of them came into sight, Ino and Sakura jumped to their feet. "Oh Hinata I am so sorry!" gushed Ino. "I had no idea until Inoru and Shikanami came home and told me!" She seized the raven-haired woman in a fierce hug and sobbed into her shoulder. "Such an awful thing! Oh, I'm just a horrible friend!"

Perplexed and blushing, Hinata hesitantly patted her friend on the back and sputtered a few condolences of her own. Meanwhile Sakura merely gave Naruto a searching look of sympathy. They mutually understood the complexity behind that look, and Naruto just nodded and forced a smile, thanking her for the concern.

He turned to the rest of the empathetic faces. "I want to be out of here soon, so I'll make this quick," he said bluntly. "By now all of you know what happened today. Shikamaru and our forensics experts have examined Zetsu's body and found a plant-based pathogen unique to the Land of Waves, so that's where I'm heading. I personally don't intend to return to the Village until I've found my kids; I've already spoken with the Old Lady, and she's agreed to come out of retirement to be Acting-Hokage while I'm away." The girls all looked at him in shock. Choji murmured something to Kiba. Even Neji's face betrayed some surprise. Naruto ignored them all and continued, "She advised me to bring along help --and I'm inclined to agree-- but I also have to think of the Village. We've attracted a lot of attention in the shinobi world. Now especially we need to maintain an image of strength and stability, and we Twelve are central to that image."

He turned his head slowly and made eye contact with everyone present. "You're my closest friends. I know each of you would come with me if you could, so that's not my question. Sai and Shino are still away on missions, and Shikamaru has to be here to help the Old Lady with damage control." Hinata moved beside him and he took her hand. "My question is, who else can I ask to _stay_?"

The rest of them shared a glance. Sakura was the first to speak. "Of course I'm coming with you. I'm not about to turn my back on a teammate," she said firmly. Then she chuckled. "The Land of Waves, huh? That really brings back some memories, doesn't it?" Naruto shared a knowing smirk.

Ino bit her lip. "…You both know I'd do anything to help, right? Well, if you need some of us to stay behind… Supporting Shikamaru, watching our twins for him, taking care of the hospital work for Sakura --there are some things I could be doing here, so I guess I could sit it out." She leveled an accusing finger and a stern look. "But you better send word if you need more help out there, you got it?!" Hinata smiled and bowed her head and said they would.

A canny look in his eye, Choji brushed a finger under his nose and spoke up from his chair. "Well, there's no way you're going without support of at least part of Ino-Shika-Cho. I'm in."

Neji and TenTen finished their quiet discussion. The brunette looked unhappy with the result, but grudgingly let her husband speak first. "Lee has gone missing again --likely on another one of his training campaigns," explained Neji. "If he were here I am sure he would eagerly and adamantly accompany this mission. I gladly offer my taijutsu prowess in place of his."

"...And I'll stay with the Village," added TenTen reluctantly. She nodded slowly. "I'll help fix up the Academy while you're away --I'll make sure Keidyan can go right back to class when he gets back!"

Finally, Kiba got up from his seat and walked over to face Naruto. Wearing a serious expression, he looked the other man in the eye. "My little girl tells me the first thing she remembers when everything went to pieces was your boy pulling her down behind cover. To hear her tell it, he acted quite the little hero right up until they took him." The skin around Naruto's eyes tightened. "Even if I didn't owe Keidyan for that, she asked me to personally hunt down the guys that grabbed him and 'mess them up.'" His mouth split into a feral grin. "And we Inuzuka are always up for a hunt. You just try to keep me and Akamaru out of it --we're with you to the end."

Suddenly the door to the front hall flung open. "I'm with you too, Boss." Complete with scarf, goggles hanging around his neck, combat jacket and cocky smirk, Konohamaru stood in the doorway.

Kiba snorted. "The guys we're after used an original Akatsuki member as a sacrificial decoy. Gonna be pretty rough customers. You sure you know what you're getting into, kid?"

"And what about Moegi?" chimed in Sakura. "You realize you'll be leaving her alone to care for your newborn."

Never breaking eye contact with his mentor, Konohamaru retorted, "Last time I checked, I was a jonin just like any of you. And Keidyan is like a son to me, and the Boss like a father --how can I face my own family with pride if I do nothing to help them now?" His smirk grew more belligerent. "I'm coming. I know the dangers, and I can't wait to give 'em a piece of me."

Choji barked a laugh. "The kid's got guts, I have to respect that." He turned an amused glance on their leader. "What's it going to be, Naruto?"

The Hokage held an even stare with the younger man. Finally, he said, "Sakura, Neji, Kiba, Choji…" His lip quirked up. "…and Konohamaru, get what you need to travel and be back here in eighteen minutes. We leave for the Land of Waves in twenty."

* * *

(End)

* * *

Okay! So how'd I do? I want to hear about the fight in particular, especially from those of you who've read Trial by Leaves. Did I improve? Does it still drag a bit, or did I simplify the wrong parts? The other thing I was concerned about was balance; I wanted to let Naruto and Hinata just tear loose, but I also didn't want to kill Zetsu too easily. In fact, I was considering making him some nameless apprentice to avoid that very issue, but at the last minute I left the name in for convenience and plot relevance. If I've still made him too much of an irreparable pansy (ouch --flower pun) I am prepared to zap his identity away.

Apart from that, what did you think of the rest of the chapter? I welcome feedback of any kind --crave it, really. ; )  
I try to make it a point to respond to every review and PM I get, but let me just give a blanket-apology in advance; since they've redone the way reviews work I haven't yet found a good system to keep track of which ones I've actually replied to. If I don't reply within a couple days, it either means I'm in the last two weeks or so of writing a chapter or I just lost your message in the shuffle. Either way, please send me a reminder --I don't like leaving feedback unanswered.

Speaking of which, I will be taking a little time off from writing before I start on the next update, because in my tunnel-vision writing frenzy I've let a lot of correspondence pile up on me --CrystalDragon791 and Chinata Sukeda, I'm looking at you two in particular.  
Don't worry, it shouldn't add more than a few days to the wait.

Until then,

~ArcTheJedi


	3. Land of Waves: Apprehension

I agree, it's been entirely too long for me too. The only explanation I can offer is that this and last semester have been the busiest in my entire education. I've been getting new reviews every month or so -and I very much appreciate the comments therein- so I know I've still got people reading my stories, but I hope I haven't entirely starved off my old fanbase. For those of you still waiting around on me, 'thank you very much' doesn't say enough for your patience.

Now, on to the good news; this chapter is the second-longest I have ever written, reaching 26 pages and over 12,000 words; furthermore, in my opinion it contains some of my best work yet; in short, it's been an excessive wait but I'm confident I've made up for it. As always, hope you enjoy what you read!

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Don't have the time for it. :/**

By the way, ten points to Gryffindor for anyone who can spot the pair of semi-hidden cameos I've snuck in here. (I'm assuming you can figure out what book series I was in the middle of before school interrupted me.)

* * *

The night was clear; the stars were out in full and competing in brilliance. Nearly translucent smoke from the dying fire made the constellations gleam and twinkle. From a knoll very near their camp, Naruto sat back propped on his hands and stared wistfully up at the sky. From behind came a soft crunch of dirt. Without turning, he posed quietly, "Have you ever thought that the full moon looks like your Byakugan?"

Neji paused and threw a glance at the pale orb overhead. "Perhaps," he admitted, taking the last few steps, "but I suspect they are not _Hyuuga_ eyes you are envisioning."

Something flickered behind the other man's expression, but he merely grunted, "Hm."

The Hyuuga knelt down next to him and shared his silent observation for a moment. "…It is now my shift of the watch," he said eventually. "I've come to relieve you."

Naruto drew a deep breath, and when he blew it out again he turned a grin on his friend. "Thank goodness!" he exclaimed. "I've been bored out of my mind out here -time to catch some sleep." He got up, dusted his coattail, and turned to go.

"Naruto." The blond stopped, barely turned his head. "I feel I must question the wisdom of your vow. You truly will not return to the Village-"

"-Until my kids are safe," the other man finished firmly.

"You realize how long that could take. We may even now be chasing a false lead. Are you prepared to forego your responsibilities as our leader for such an indefinite period?"

"…Let me ask you something, Neji. Your son is about Keidyan's age, right?" He looked up at the sky again. A moment later Neji followed suit. "What if it had been Hizashi kidnapped? Could you bear to sleep in your home knowing he's not there? Could you go about your duties knowing he's out there waiting for you?"

Neji said nothing.

"Even the thought of it," Naruto dropped his eyes to the dirt, "…makes me sick to my stomach. So, that's why. It's not that I'm abandoning the Village. I just want my kids to know their father didn't rest looking for them."

Neji didn't need to see the Hokage's face to know the look of resolve there. He blinked. "I… understand. Yet, in the possibility that we never-"

Leather rasped as Naruto's fists clenched. "We _will_ find them." The words were spoken with absolute finality, daring the Hyuuga to challenge their certainty. But Neji was satisfied; he began to focus on the watch.

Naruto trotted down the hill. He cut close to the fire and nudged another log into the embers with his foot, careful not to disturb Kiba sleeping against Akamaru's curled flank. He paused beside Konohamaru's tent long enough to smirk at the contorted, drooling form inside, before crawling into his own. He shrugged his coat, peeled off his shoes and bracers and lay down on the mat.

Almost before he'd settled the body next to him rolled over, dropped a hand on his chest. He understood the meaning in that simple act and pulled Hinata close. He rolled his head toward her and chuckled grimly. "Couldn't sleep either, huh?" The fearful anxiety pinching her face found echoes in his gut, but he kept a smile in place and stroked her hair. "Hey, don't worry. The kids are fine, I'm sure of it."

She shivered. "Hizumi is probably so scared…"

"Then it's a good thing she's got her own personal knucklehead to watch out for her, just like her mom." He kissed her forehead. "When push comes to shove, Keidyan's pretty tough. He won't let anything happen to them, just you wait and see."

Hinata's expression remained tight, but a light smile graced her lips and she relaxed in his arms a little. They fell into silence, staring out through the crack in the tent flaps together. The warmth of their embrace and the steady pace of her breathing made Naruto's eyelids begin to droop. Just as the world grew fuzzy, he dimly heard his wife's likewise-drowsy voice.

"Hey… Naruto…?"

"Hm?"

"Did… did you ever notice… the full moon… looks like their eyes…"

* * *

Sakura stepped out of her tent, took a deep breath of the crisp morning air, and smiled. The sun hadn't yet risen above the trees, but the sky was beginning to glow brighter blue. She began a standard stretch routine, but paused mid-twist when she noticed an appetizing smell.

"'Morning, Sakura!" Choji called cheerfully from a log by the remains of the fire. Akamaru huffed her way, thumped his tail twice, and curled up again.

Kiba, who was hunched over the embers, glanced over his shoulder as she approached and smirked. "You're just in time for breakfast. I promised the first one to Hinata, but the rest will be done in no time." He brandished one of what she now saw were several skewered fish.

Sakura took another deep breath of the smell, smiled and sat down next to Choji. "That sounds wonderful," she said. "It beats the rations I brought, that's for sure."

Choji grimaced in disgust. Kiba wrinkled his nose and exclaimed, "Ugh! You still _pack_ the standard stuff?" He shook his head and turned back to the coals. "Tasteless bread, vitamin pills, and that weird meat-paste stuff? No thanks."

Their hefty friend crossed his arms and nodded conspiratorially. "The Akamichi clan definitely had no say in the creation of our 'survival' rations. We do know our food though; my father told me that paste isn't even meat! It's really-"

"Y'know what Choji? I really don't think I want to know." (_Arf!_)

Her friends' bickering merely made Sakura smile. She glanced around the camp. Aside from her tent, two others were still up. Off toward the trees she spotted Neji performing morning warm-ups that looked half taijutsu exercises, half ritual-like stretching. At that point her stomach grumbled and she threw another look at the fish. "That smell is torture! I hope we don't have to wait much longer. Where is Hinata, anyway?"

"She went to the stream where Akamaru and I were fishing, to wash up, she said. It's just over the hill a little ways, so she should be -ah, here she is now."

Brushing a hand through her hair, the woman in question came walking over the knoll and paused at the sudden attention of four pairs of eyes. Hesitantly, she approached and performed a small, stiff-looking bow. "G-good morning, S-Sakura. Did you sleep well?"

"I'm a little stiff, but well enough," replied the other woman, rotating a shoulder. "I've missed sleeping outdoors -it seems like ages since I've been out in the field like this."

Hinata nodded and smiled, and absently accepted a fish skewer from Kiba. "Yes, I…" But whatever she was going to say died on her lips when she realized no one else had any food. "K- -Kiba!" she scolded, blushing her mortification. "I t-told you not to w-wait on me!"

But the man under fire rolled his eyes and waved off the fish thrust back at him. "Quit worrying, Hinata, the first batch just finished anyway."

"The girls have excellent timing this morning!" agreed Choji before tearing into the trout Kiba offered him. Sakura gladly accepted another, but when Kiba plucked up the last two on the fire, he frowned and examined a spot on one of them. Shrugging, he put the one back on the fire on that side and tossed the other to his waiting canine friend, who attacked it almost as ravenously as the resident Akamichi.

Meanwhile Hinata, who was trying to regain her composure, frowned curiously at the almost-bare coals. "O-oh… a-are there not enough for Naruto and Konohamaru?"

Kiba chuckled. "There are, but not for a while -I haven't cleaned the rest. You snooze, you lose, after all."

At that moment a horrible noise loud as a bombshell and grating to the ear shattered the quiet of the morning, prompting them to glance back at the standing tents. Even Akamaru paused his meal for a moment of curiosity, though Choji happily kept eating as if it were the most natural sound in the world.

Kiba whistled in amazement. "And they snooze _hard_, apparently. I think I felt my teeth rattle."

Sakura hissed her vexation and stabbed her skewer into the dirt. "Come on, Hinata, we'd better get them up. I'll take the kid." She crossed to Konohamaru's tent quickly and without another word plucked at a couple threads. The tent collapsed into an untidy mound of fabric -which almost instantly began to jump and thrash.

"Mmf! Fuf goon um?" came the muffled cries within.

Sakura planted her hands on her hips, bent close and spoke fiercely. "This is what you get for trying to peek on me last night!"

Konohamaru's voice grew much louder, and thus slightly more discernable. "WHA-? I w… _not_-!"

"Yeah, yeah, likely story," growled Sakura, but her tone was harder than the smirk she wore.

Meanwhile Kiba still looked stuck in his stupor. "I can't even tell which of them that was," he said dumbfounded. He glanced at Hinata, who'd only made it a few steps before Sakura's methods startled her. "Has Naruto gotten any better over the years?"

"O-oh y-yes," she stammered quickly. "H-he hardly e-ever snores any more, e-except when he's very t-tired or… stressed."

"And that's what it's like when he does? You poor woman."

Hinata shocked pink. "O-oh no, n-no, i-it's not that bad, r-really! A-and besides, I-I got used to it back on Team 8 when y-" She caught herself, reddened even more and hurried away.

Kiba looked offended. "What, me? I do not snore." When no one responded, he called, "Hey Akamaru, back me up here!" But the canine studiously ignored him, focused on gnawing at his breakfast. Choji chuckled.

"You snore pretty badly, Kiba," Sakura informed him as she resumed her seat. "Didn't take me more than a couple missions with you to figure that out." She shook her head grimly as she seized her fish. "If there's a wife to be pitied, it's Nomi."

"I remember her comparing notes with Tanbe once," chimed in Choji. "Poor girl."

Kiba scowled at the friends who betrayed him. "I don't believe it," he grumped, plucking up the last skewer on the fire. "There is no way I'm worse than the Loudmouthed Knucklehead."

"Is that a fact?" Hinata had just been reaching for the tent flaps but she jerked back in surprise as two of her husband burst out of the tent… and then five, and then ten, and then too many to count. The campsite was a mass of confusion obscured by white coats and blond hair for a handful of seconds, until finally a massive pulse of smoke washed the area clean. When the cloud cleared the little patch of forest looked as though the group of ninja had never stopped there; each of their packs were assembled and placed at their feet, ready to go; a groggy Konohamaru lay in a heap, rescued from his tent but looking rather baffled; the tents themselves had disappeared, packed up and stowed away. Naruto himself stood right in their midst, one arm looped around Hinata. "Let's get moving everyone, the Land of Waves isn't far now." He took a bite of fish. "No time to waste, so eat what you can on the way." He looked right at the wilder ninja and smiled. "'You snooze, you lose,' right Kiba?"

With a jolt, Kiba realized his own fish had vanished from his hand and Choji was now cheerfully putting out the embers. He glanced around and saw everyone double-checking their packs and getting ready between bites (except Konohamaru, who still looked like he was puzzling together the morning's events). Even Neji had returned unnoticed, waiting patiently with a package of dried fruit. His stomach complained loudly, but Kiba wryly returned Naruto's smirk. Akamaru apologetically offered the remains of his fish, but Kiba just chuckled and ruffled his fur. "That's okay boy, you go ahead and finish it."

He stood and slung on his pack. "So, Choji, what did you say was in that ration paste?"

* * *

The sun was just beginning to dip from its apex when the trees thinned and the group arrived on the last hilltop overlooking their destination; half a mile away just beyond a small outcrop of land stood one of the most famous architectural accomplishments in the region.

"Same old bridge," murmured the Hokage placidly.

Like a grand gray lane stretching into the sea, the Great Naruto Bridge sprawled out before them. Even from this distance they could spot the banners waving proudly in the wind, welcoming travelers to the Land of Waves. It was a welcome widely received; crowds of people including at least two merchant caravans were bustling to and fro, and there was a nigh-constant stream of traffic on the main road to the west.

Naruto, Kiba and Konohamaru started forward, but Sakura flagged them down. "It's time we discussed subtlety," she said. "I think we should disguise our identities as Leaf shinobi."

Konohamaru balked. "What for?" he demanded.

"As Naruto said, our Village has attracted a lot of attention," Sakura explained patiently. "It's too soon for the other nations to know what happened yet, but we don't want to draw any interest in our mission here, especially from our enemies."

Scowling, Kiba shook his head. "What enemies? The Land of Waves is one of our closest trading partners, remember? This island loves our Village -I'll bet if we go in there and flash the Leaf we'll find out anything they've got on our kidnappers."

"Or we might alert the kidnappers to our presence, allowing them to cover their tracks," observed Neji quietly.

Sakura's lips were pursed as if he'd just narrowly beaten her to the words. She seamlessly got over her surprise and spent the breath else wise. "Exactly. More importantly, we don't want to spread the knowledge that our Hokage is so far from home."

Konohamaru barked a laugh. "Yeah, where the Old Lady has taken up shop. Nobody's forgotten the Sannin yet -the Village will be fine."

The senior medic fixed him with an exasperated gaze. "It's not the Village I'm concerned about," she said icily. "We might a have fierce reputation, but we are not a big group. A Kage away from his Village like this -for an indefinite period of time? …It's not common. The wrong people might find us very tempting." The younger man snorted and opened his mouth, but Sakura cut him off. "-This isn't about proving our power or your masculinity, Konohamaru!" she snapped. "This is about finding the kids, before interference makes it impossible."

He seemed to deflate as these words killed his rebuttal. His eyes flicked between Naruto, whose expression had gone hard and unreadable, and Hinata, who merely looked sick. Someone made a sound like a cough. Neji glanced around the group at the rocks and trees nearby.

The silence lasted one beat more before Choji cleared his throat. "Those are good points, Sakura, and I don't disagree, but if I could offer my thoughts…?" She threw him a curious glance, but motioned for him to continue. He turned and stared Naruto in the face. "Shikamaru figures these kidnappers wanted us to follow them. That probably means they want a ransom-"

"Or a chance to taunt us," muttered Kiba. Akamaru growled menacingly.

Choji nodded. "Either way, given what they've already pulled off, I don't think we're going to find them before they spot us no matter what we do. And I don't think they're likely to tip their hand until they've seen ours." He shrugged. "Of course, they could also be laying a trap for us…"

But Naruto had decided. "We'll compromise," he said suddenly. "Our headbands are our pride as shinobi, and I won't let us hide them. But we don't have to advertise them, either," he added, forestalling Sakura's objection. "We're splitting up. Cross the bridge and enter the city in twos and threes. Blend in to the crowd as much as you can and try not to draw attention to yourself, but keep an eye out for anyone looking at you too closely." He rounded on the tall Hyuuga next to him. "Neji, I want you in the first group. When you get to the city, take a look around and try to find somewhere inconspicuous near the gate where we can meet up." He returned to addressing the group. "I'll go with the second group -yes, I know, Sakura, but I think Akamaru will draw more looks than me, don't you think? Right, so Kiba, you'll come last, and Hinata, you'll be my spotter, with…"

They were already organizing to follow his instructions before Naruto even finished setting them.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Konohamaru set foot on the bridge behind the Boss and Boss-Lady. He glanced around eagerly at the mass of travelers pressed in around them, almost hoping that trouble would be stupid enough to strike at him in present company. He knew it was unlikely, however; Neji and Choji had already crossed a while ago in the midst of some tradesmen without incident or, as near as the others could tell, any second looks. He peered ahead past the closest wagon. The merchant caravan they'd slipped in behind looked normal too, to his disappointment.

"Try to look more natural, Konohamaru," admonished Hinata quietly as she glanced back at him. He jerked and nodded, embarrassed. Konohamaru saw that her Byakugan was active; she seemed to be watching a man behind her head until his gaze moved on before turning back.

Despite the nerves in her tone, Konohamaru had to admire the Boss-Lady's acting. She strolled along as if nothing were amiss, her hands lightly on her husband's arm, bobbing her head as if in animated conversation while quietly warning them of individuals who looked their way or might be otherwise observing them.

Since he could only see the back of Naruto's head, Konohamaru wondered if the Boss had managed to conceal his grimace completely yet; it had been a heated argument, but Sakura had finally convinced him that the distinctive coat of two famous Hokage needed concealment. It was draped like a butler's towel across the arm Hinata held between them.

Despite this, Naruto kept up his end of the façade nearly as well as his wife. He nodded and laughed occasionally, but from this proximity Konohamaru could see a nearly imperceptible hitch in his step, and once or twice his head twitched too sharply following Hinata's marks.

If anyone gave them a closer look it would be obvious they were ninja, and even those were not terribly uncommon, but few seemed to be paying them that much attention. To most they appeared to be just a normal, travelling couple -tourists, maybe, chatting about the sights. And he, Konohamaru, trailing close behind them with Hinata turning to fuss over him now and then, he must look like their… He let himself smirk at the thought for a moment, before reminding himself with a mental shake that he was here to find their _real_ kids.

A shadow swept over him and he realized suddenly that they had passed under the arch at the end. He quickly looked over his shoulder and immediately caught sight of the large plaque boldly declaring the name 'The Great Naruto Bridge'. Feeling his smile widen, Konohamaru leaned forward and whispered, "You know what this means, Boss. You have to tell the bridge story again." He spoke as if there was no debating this simple fact.

The eye that turned on him had a merry glint and a chuckle for company. "Remind me later," the Hokage replied, before leading them into the main street.

Konohamaru glanced around and had to admit he was impressed. In the fifteen years since the bridge had been completed, the town had become …well, it wasn't quite a bustling burg yet, but no one would recognize it as the sleepy little village it had once been. It was easy to see why there were so many carpenters and tradesmen about; the townspeople, apparently enthused with their success, had lined the road almost right up to the bridge with inviting restaurants, homey inns, brightly-colored shops, at least two fashion boutiques, and even a few flashy souvenir stands, nearly all manned at the door by cheerful faces garnering for the travelers' attentions. Much further up the road he saw the boisterous advertising give way to crisp-looking financial buildings and perhaps an office or two, and further yet on a hill beyond a few more streets he could make out some nice mid-sized homes.

Trade and business were strong, but the Land was not quite wealthy yet. Overall, for Konohamaru the place conjured an image like a thing that was months old but looked almost new; paint had begun to lose its shine but not yet to flake or smudge; banners that were still as bright and colorful as the day they were woven had just begun to acquire tiny rips here and there. There were four small ruts in the dirt that no one had had the time to repair, and haphazard-looking scaffolding had been erected on three rooftops nearby -the first of the new market's second floors. The town seemed to be growing at a rate that left its own citizens breathless, but from their expressions they were simply content to be endlessly proud of their own hard work.

The road ahead began to shift off center, and Konohamaru realized the Boss was leading them toward a restaurant that reminded him of Ichiraku but large enough to have a decent spread of tables out in front of the counter. He spotted Neji waiting for them beneath the short entrance flaps, but the Hyuuga glided away as they drew near, returning to a small table he occupied by himself.

They paused when they entered (ostensibly surveying the place) until the Boss-Lady motioned like she'd noticed her cousin for the first time and led them over to him. There were only enough chairs for four, but Naruto stopped him from pulling over a chair from a vacant table. Confused, Konohamaru looked around for the ninja who should have been in the fourth seat and quickly found him at the bar, laughing with the cook over a tall plate of appetizers. Konohamaru threw a look at the other senior shinobi, but none of them seemed to take note of Choji's socializing, so he hesitantly sat down.

The four of them quickly compared notes, confirmed that nobody noticed anything suspicious (Neji had seen a carpenter look away from them quickly on the bridge, but he concluded it was to laugh at the ridiculously pretentious hairdo of the woman ahead of them) and settled down to wait.

Within five minutes Neji nodded toward the bridge and stood. Konohamaru twisted to see Sakura leading a very surly Kiba through the archway behind some surprisingly exotic-looking merchants. A moment later he saw what was making the Inuzuka so sour; an improvised rope leash had been fastened between Akamaru's neck and Kiba's wrist, an appearance that did make the canine seem less ninja hound than exotic pet but must have been mortifying for both partners. Akamaru's head and tail drooped as he padded along. They saw Neji and veered toward him. Kiba was throwing Sakura dirty looks.

"This might be trouble." Hinata spoke so quietly it took Konohamaru a second to register the words. He jerked his eyes up the road where the Boss and Boss-Lady were watching a group of men approach.

They were thugs, blunt and simple. There were eight or nine of them in all, most of them thick, stupid-looking apes who dressed in the remains of their meals, patched together by loose bits of metal that were either tacky decoration or laughable attempts at armor. One had scars and tattoos in such quantity they were indistinguishable, another was missing a shoe and so many teeth it looked like his diet consisted of things nearly as hard as his head. By stark contrast, the three men in the lead were slim and graciously attired, like snakes in fine clothes. Instead of meat cleavers or maces they wore katanas at their sides, and they walked with sneering swaggers that suggested they had some faint trace of skill with their blades and were utterly self-captivated because of it.

Konohamaru tensed, but the men turned their backs to the restaurant and clumped around a small stand he hadn't noticed squeezed in between a ritzy boutique and a large shop with woodcrafts in the window. From what he could see of the stand before the gang eclipsed it, it looked less fortunate than its surroundings, and likely for good reason; the nearly-haggard man behind it recognized this band, and visibly dreaded their approach.

There was a sort of tense silence in the air and Konohamaru knew he wasn't the only one of his group paying close attention. Moments later a trembling voice pierced the noise of the crowd. "P-Please! I will have the full amount in- -in just two or three more days!"

Two sets of laughter went up at this, one a high tittering, the other a saccharine scoff. A third voice cut across the other two, a patronizing drawl that carried the unpleasant sensation of cold syrup poured down the spine. "Oh, I'm certain you could, but the problem is that weekly payments really ought to be paid weekly. If we let you go another two days, why then, you'd have two less days to meet _next_ week's bill. And we can't let that happen now can we? What do you think, Bazba?"

One of the big goons pulled his finger from his nose, guffawed and shook his head gleefully. His bulk shifted enough that Konohamaru could see through to the stand. He caught a glimpse of the ringleader's thin face and cruel smirk before the man turned back to his target. "What about you, Jibi? Shu?" he asked, addressing the other snaky men lounging against the ends of the stand.

The one on the left was twirling a single long lock of shocking pink hair. He giggled. "Quite right, Ruzo, mustn't let him get behind."

His counterpart was toying with a knife between bandaged fingers. He had a thin tracing scar on one cheekbone. "Agreed. We are nothing if not helpful bookkeepers…"

The leader -Ruzo- drew suddenly closer to the merchant, who was looking very small. "And your books are behind, old man."

Konohamaru glanced around. Was no one else seeing this? Next to him, Naruto had gone still and deathly silent, an ominous look on his face. Off to the right, Sakura and Kiba were urgently trying to reach them, but cross-traffic had cut them off.

"B-b-b-but you must understand!" The merchant's voice began to crack with panic. There was a lull in the ambient noise as the nearest clumps of people began to notice the scene. "B-business has been poor! I-if I could only a-attract more attention-!"

Ruzo reeled back and laughed. "Ha! Is that so? Well then-_let's attract some attention!_" Abandoning all pretense of discretion, he waved his brutes aside and shouted these last words to the public in general. A group of hard-eyed villagers nearby muttered something that sounded like 'shipbuilder' amongst themselves, and two young men took off up the street at a sprint.

"Come one, come all!" Ruzo was taunting loudly. The rest of his band backed him up with a chorus of chuckles. "Come, spend your gold at our old friend's stand! He has dues to pay and no means to pay them." Activity in the area had ceased. Foreigners ranged from curious to uneasy, but the villagers uniformly glared back at him in silence. The greeters of each nearby shop vanished indoors; the cook at the counter behind the Leaf ninja swore under his breath and hurried into his kitchen. When no one spoke a word, Ruzo's face twisted into a mocking sneer. "…No one? Tut, tut, what very un-generous people." He turned back to his victim. "I'm afraid nobody at all seems to believe you're in financial trouble, friend." His hand very pointedly went to his sword hilt. "Perhaps you just need to look the part, ne?"

There was a sudden sharp _bang_ as Naruto shot to his feet so quickly he toppled his chair.

"No!" A breathless Sakura had finally reached them, and whispered frantically, "Naruto, you mustn't get involved in-"

"You _**can not**_ suggest we ignore this, Sakura."

Sakura hesitated and threw a glance toward the stall, where the man with the bandaged fingers was beginning to trace his blade perilously close to the merchant's own hands. Konohamaru saw a ghost of the same dark expression the Boss wore. "No," she said quietly. "No, of course not." Then she turned a firm look on her old teammate. "But it can't be you. We still have our mission to think of, which means you need to lay low." Naruto clearly didn't like this plan, but he clenched his jaw and said nothing.

"Bunch of stuck-up cowards," snarled Kiba, eying the thugs dangerously. "They strut around in a pack like they're the big dogs when they're just smug little rats. I'll claw those smirks off their faces."

"I'll take a piece of that." Konohamaru jerked; he'd been so intent he hadn't noticed Choji return. The hefty ninja retained his easy expression, though his eyes had narrowed. "The big guys are mine," he said coolly.

Sakura split an exasperated look between them. "Boys, you're not listening! We need to put this down without revealing ourselves as shinobi. And subtlety is not your thing, neither of you."

Konohamaru was just about to offer his own bid to destroy them, but Neji spoke first.

"No," he agreed softly. "Subtlety is the Gentle Fist. If it must be done then Hinata and I can handle it." And that ended the discussion. The restaurant's other patrons had long since filed out to get a closer look; no one was watching their corner table. Neji formed a general hand sign and smoke washed across him. When it cleared he'd been replaced by a sour-looking man with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin dressed in dark robes. Another puff and where Hinata had been appeared a freckled redhead, likewise in dark robes. Konohamaru barely had time to puzzle at the odd choices before they strode out into the street.

Ruzo had been loudly discussing with his cohorts how to best make their victim look more 'needy' -whether they should lop off a finger, gouge out an eye, break his legs, or simply carve chunks out of his stand and merchandise. The crowd had begun to mutter angrily, growing louder with each new idea. The brutes seemed to notice this and fingered their weapons menacingly, keeping the folks in the forefront wary. Finally Ruzo broke off his list and swept slitted eyes across his audience. "People, please," he admonished casually. "We're trying to discuss a way to turn this flea-bitten little stand into a profiting establishment."

"It seems to me that if it is flea-bitten, the best course of action is to get rid of the fleas." Heads turned in surprise at this new voice. Villagers parted to let the greasy-haired stranger through, followed by the redhead.

Ruzo's eyes narrowed. "Care to elaborate on that advice, _friend_?"

The interloper sighed and drawled, "Oh dear. I'd thought my meaning simple enough that even present company could understand it." He cast a disdainful sneer between Ruzo and the ogre Bazba, the former going red in the face, the latter looking puzzled. "Shall I explain?" he continued. His voice was so quiet and intense it seemed barely more than a whisper, but the crowd caught every word. "You see, fleas are useless little vermin who draw blood away and give nothing in return. Since you appear to draw this man's lifeblood away for nothing but worthless advice and empty threats, in my mind that makes you _vermin_." His tone was not so much patronizing as coldly analytical.

For a moment there was utter silence as thugs and villagers alike gaped in disbelief. Trembling with anger as though he'd never been so affronted, Ruzo ground out, "Do you even realize what we could do to you, fool?"

The stranger's scornful sneer returned. "Why don't you-"

But by now the ape Bazba finally seemed to realize he'd been insulted. Bellowing a furious roar he charged, leading his brutes behind him.

It was like watching a poorly rehearsed ballet; the greasy-haired man glided along effortlessly as the thugs stumbled and crashed around him, hacking at empty air and tripping over each other's feet. Every once and a while one of them fell and remained prone; Konohamaru could have sworn he glimpsed a thin-lipped smirk of grim enjoyment on the 'stranger's' face.

Meanwhile the two brutes who thought themselves cleverest decided to go after the man's smaller, obviously weaker companion. The redhead twirled around them, shoving each of them in the smalls of their backs and sending them sprawling to the dirt. She spun and advanced on Ruzo, but the man with the bandaged fingers intercepted her. She danced back from his blade, waded back in, darted forward-

-and suddenly, for no apparent cause, she staggered and fell to her knees. Her opponent pounced, raising his sword for a crowning blow with a manic look of glee on his face.

Konohamaru was blinded when something white flew across his field of vision. Half an instant later it vanished, just in time to see Naruto catch the falling blade on a bracer-clad forearm and savagely shove it aside. With a single spinning motion the wrathful ninja swept the thug's legs out from under him and planted an open palm on his chest. Energy swirled briefly and his fall violently accelerated; the resounding impact echoed off the nearby storefronts.

The Hokage scathed the area with a fiercely protective glance: Ruzo and his other cohort had vanished; the last of the ogres hit the ground hard; smoke began to disperse around Neji, having just discarded his now-pointless disguise; everyone else was frozen. Ignoring the stares, Naruto knelt to help his wife, who had likewise released her transformation.

Excited whispers rippled through the crowd. Sakura startled Konohamaru by striding out into the open street, and he hurried to catch up. As they parted the last curtain of bystanders they caught a glimpse of the Uzumakis' quiet discussion; Naruto's lip was skewed like he wasn't convinced he shouldn't be worried, but Hinata was on her feet, flushed but composed.

Konohamaru grinned. "Nice save, Boss."

Naruto flashed him a smirk before reluctantly facing Sakura's level stare. "Sorry, Sakura. Couldn't help myself." He did an admirable job attempting to look apologetic.

The senior medic blew out a long sigh and nodded. "It was going to happen eventually anyway," she conceded. She extended the coat she'd fielded out of the air for him, and he sheepishly took it. "I hope you realize, though, that we've encouraged a folk legend of Leaf ninja coming to the rescue," she continued, nodding her head at the crowd. By now several individuals were making animated gestures at their headbands and conversing eagerly with their neighbors. More than a few threw glances back toward the bridge.

Several cries of 'shipbuilder' sparked an abrupt commotion town-side, where the crowd parted to admit three young men, including the boys that had run off during Ruzo's tirade. The man they had retrieved looked to be about Konohamaru's own age; he had a lean build and heavy calluses -clearly an artisan, but from the reverent expressions he was drawing a highly respected one. He wore a thin twisted headband with a long knot tied over one ear. "All right, what's going on here?" he said officially as he approached.

The Boss issued a low whistle. "_Inari?_ How long has it been?"

The other man jerked in surprise. After half a beat of disbelief, he grinned. "I don't believe it. Naruto!" He threw up his arms and the two embraced, laughing and slapping backs like old friends. The general buzz of the crowd grew louder. Konohamaru understood their sentiment; so _this_ was the other member of the Great Bridge's iconic pair. "It really has been too long," Inari said when they pulled apart, still smiling. "What're you doing here?"

Naruto's expression grew pained. "Here as in the Land of Waves? …It's a long story. Here as in this spot?" The smirk became genuine. "Well, we liked your town so much we figured we'd clean up some trash." He gestured at the litter of unconscious bodies at their feet.

"And you did. Wow. I'd heard that Ruzo's band was up to no good again, but -yup, they're his all right, there's Shu." It was Inari's turn to whistle. "What did you hit him with?"

"Overprotectiveness," interjected Sakura.

Without missing a beat Naruto replied, "Shouldn't have raised a sword to my wife." Hinata reddened but looked ever so slightly pleased. "Inari, my wife Hinata. Hinata, my old friend Inari. Sorry for the crater, by the way."

"Eh, don't worry about the road, it's been needing mending for a while now. We just don't have an excuse to keep putting it off any more." Inari wiped his hands and shook first Hinata's, then Sakura's. "A real pleasure, Hinata. Good to see you again, Sakura." He glanced between Neji, who had been observing quietly, and Konohamaru. "Who else do we have?"

"Actually," Sakura chimed in again, "can we save the introductions for later? We really need to get out of the public eye."

"Oh! Right, of course." He turned to the crowd and raised his voice. "All right everyone, obviously we've got some pretty famous guests -especially for us." A ripple of laughter went up, but Sakura winced at the choice of words. "But that's no reason to neglect the rest of our visitors, so let's pick our friends here up out of the dirt, drop 'em off at Koribu's and get back to the day."

A disjointed cheer met these words as a great detachment of villagers surged forward, gathered up the thugs' weapons and seized their nerveless limbs. Inari rounded on Naruto immediately. "You guys haven't booked an inn yet, have you?"

"Nope, just rolled in."

"Good, you'll be staying with me then."

Konohamaru barely heard this exchange, turning about trying to decide if he should pitch in. In the end it didn't seem necessary; there were already at least four men to each ogre, and another man and woman disdainfully moving Shu between them; in fact, despite the rest of the street returning to normal activity there seemed to be even more people among them than the crowd had offered. A moment later he was sure of it when he identified several not-quite-new uniforms.

"Ah, good. Koribu's Peacekeepers are here, right on tardy," muttered Inari sarcastically when he noticed them. Whether the officers heard him or were just embarrassed to find their work done for them, they all studiously avoided his eyes and led the villagers with their new charges away without a word. Inari shook his head after them. "At least we can count on them for cleanup. I'm glad you were here, Naruto, it would have been annoying to deal with Ruzo until they arrived."

Konohamaru was startled. "You were going to stand up to the whole gang by yourself? You're not shinobi, are you?"

The artisan laughed. "Hardly. Ruzo can talk big, but he's not as clever as he likes to think he is. He keeps putting together these muscle gangs to hide behind, but he never quite realizes how badly he's outnumbered." He made several pointed nods and brief waves, and Konohamaru realized that the greeters for each establishment had reappeared on their doorstops, every one of them armed with some form of weapon: pitchforks, clubs, fishing pikes, a meat cleaver (from the restaurant)… the man from the woodcraft store grinned back at Inari and saluted with a katana of much higher make than the thugs'.

"Good day, Shipbuilder!" he called before returning the blade to his shop.

Konohamaru thought back to the uniformly hard-eyed crowd glaring silently at Ruzo and decided he was suitably impressed. He began to wonder whether they had even needed to intervene at all. When he glanced around again he saw Naruto and Inari addressing the unfortunate merchant at his unfortunate stand.

"…wasn't about to let bandits have their way right in front of me," the Boss was saying.

"Even so, thank you, Master Ninja, thank you," the poor man blubbered. "I make so little already -I don't know what I would have done if Ruzo…" He gulped.

"Yeah, speaking of profits," said Inari, frowning, "what are you still doing on the main road, Gan? Didn't I tell you your wares will sell better at the port?" At this proximity Konohamaru realized the stand was adorned with beautifully hand-crafted fishing lures and nets.

"Y-yes, you did, you did, but I can't afford to put up there -Gapol has raised the rates for shorefront property again…"

Something glinted behind Inari's eyes and turned his frown into a scowl. "He did, did he? Tell you what, Gan, tomorrow morning you set up your stand right next to my office and let me worry about the fees."

At this the older man finally did burst into tears. "Thank you Shipbuilder, thank you!" he sobbed, seizing Inari's hand and pumping it vigorously. "A thousand times! Thank you, thank you, thank you…"

The Boss and Builder bid him farewell and moved off, Konohamaru in tow. "Gan's a family man," Inari explained idly, a catch in his voice. "Must've been heartbreaking to come home with as little as he's been."

Naruto nodded solemnly. "Hm. 'Shipbuilder', huh? And who's this Gapol character?"

"Ah-tut-tut-tut, first I've got someone you need to meet. Let's go to my place - you remember Mom's cooking, don't you? Good, good, we'll have to have a big meal tonight -how many are you?"

Hinata fell into step with her husband as Inari began to lead them off. Konohamaru glanced 'round for the rest of the party. The street had by and large returned to normal, vendors shouting and bodies bustling (though many still glancing their way). He spotted Sakura off to one side exchanging quiet words with Neji, the latter scanning the rooftops with his Byakugan. When he gave the barest shake of his head, she turned back to the restaurant where Kiba gave her a similar sign from their shadowed corner. Sakura grimaced and twitched her head; Kiba nodded and vanished. Through the shade, Konohamaru could see Choji back in his seat at the counter.

* * *

They found a warm welcome at Inari's more-than-decent-sized home. Old Tazuna greeted them with hearty laughter and backslaps much in the same vein as his grandson. Inari's mother Tsunami assured Naruto and Sakura how wonderful it was to see them again, and informed all of them they were welcome to stay as long as they liked. Best of all, Inari proudly introduced his own wife Kichita, a petite young woman with an easy, dimpled smile who seemed surprised but thrilled by their visit.

After Naruto had introduced his own party (minus Kiba and Choji, who had not yet arrived) and at Konohamaru's insistence the first order of business was a retelling of the Great Bridge story. The Boss and Inari shared the duty, and turned out to be a dynamic and vivacious pair of storytellers. Given the years that had passed (but more specifically the choice of narrators) some measure of embellishment did creep in -Kichita had never heard the version where Inari boldly faced down the murderous Zabuza alone, for example, and Sakura could have sworn it was Kakashi-sensei that had scared off Gato's cutthroat army, not the mighty loudmouth- but no one really seemed to mind. There was only one tense moment in which Inari had begun to cautiously skirt around Sasuke's part in the story with careful glances at his two friends, but when Sakura mildly corrected him and Naruto seamlessly continued the story the issue was quickly glossed over and forgotten.

The story was just winding down to its finish with Inari valiantly defending children from Gato's henchmen while Naruto single-handedly beat back a Mist Village death squad, and Tsunami was just talking about getting dinner started, when Choji arrived at the door bearing an armload of groceries. Figured their kitchen could use the extra supplies tonight, he explained. Kichita called him a hero and invited Hinata and Sakura to help her and her mother-in-law in the kitchen. It was indeed going to be a big meal.

During the preparation and the meal itself Konohamaru listened intently as Inari described the last several years. They learned that Tazuna's bridge had done exactly as he intended: brought trade and new life into the Land of Waves, and fueled the zeal sparked by the town's stand against Gato. Seeking to continue his grandfather's work, Inari had trained to become a carpenter, but he soon realized that with Gato gone the shipping industry was in abandoned shambles and open before him. So, he became a shipwright instead, and from there things just naturally blossomed into the town's first native import/export business. Sea trade in the years since had become nearly as prosperous as the land-born traffic over the bridge, redoubling the region's economic growth. And though Inari tried modestly to downplay it, clearly the town revered him for it.

"Nowadays you ask anyone around these parts who their biggest heroes are, and they say the Bridgebuilder and the Shipbuilder," laughed Tazuna, ruffling Inari's hair. "The Bridgebuilder dared to dream, and the Shipbuilder dared 'em all to chase it. I tell you what, my grandson has become the spirit of this town, same as his father was."

"My husband isn't the mayor, but he might as well be," agreed Kichita proudly as she and Tsunami brought out the second course.

Inari glanced down bashfully, but Konohamaru could see the grin he was hiding. "Thanks dear, but Mayor Hyo's got a better head for politics and administration than I do, and he's a good friend to boot. The town's in good hands with him." He shook his head and looked up at Naruto and Hinata across the table. "But that's basically how things are in the Land of Waves. How goes it in the Land of Fire? You guys still haven't told me what brings you our way."

It appeared to Konohamaru as if the levity of the evening deflated and sank into the middles of both Uzumaki parents, weighing them down in their seats and drawing tight the strings behind their faces. Even his voice heavy, Naruto explained the events surrounding and following the kidnapping. As he spoke the same sense of sunken spirits spread to claim the room. The rest of the team remained respectfully silent. Tsunami appeared in the kitchen doorway and listened intently, settling a depthless expression of sympathy on Hinata. Kichita sat stone-still, paling hands clasped over her mouth. Both builders leaned forward with the same rapt look of shock.

"…arrived in town this afternoon, which is where you came in," Naruto finished tiredly. When no one spoke for a long moment, he glanced around at all the somber faces and drew himself up confidently. "If they're here, we'll find them. If they're not, we'll pick up their trail and follow them. Shouldn't be more than a week either way. They think they're good, but I know we're better. Believe it."

And just like that, the atmosphere thinned a bit. Choji went back to munching, and Hinata managed a faint smile. No one cared to mention the ugly possibilities, such as false leads. They felt like outside chances.

Tazuna clapped his hands together. "Ho! I believe it. You'll have those kids back in no time, just wait and see!"

"Sounds like I have one week to plan a victory feast," agreed Tsunami with an easy smile before she returned to the kitchen.

But Kichita still looked pensive. "I had no idea… people like that -ninja, even- practically in our own backyard…"

Sakura was quick on the uptake. "If they didn't want to be found no one can expect you to know about them. And I doubt you're in any danger -if they haven't been troubling civilians already I can't imagine they would start now."

Kichita gave one minimal, absent nod, but threw a worried glance at her husband, who looked just as perturbed. "I'm so sorry, Naruto," said Inari. "I… I don't even know what to say."

"Don't worry about it. This sort of thing…" The Boss drew a sigh that Konohamaru couldn't quite describe, that ended in a grim sort of smirk. "This sort of thing happens when you're a shinobi. We'll take care of it."

His friend drew his chair closer. "Still, if there's anything I can do- -I'm well-connected, I could ask around town- -or there's a florist or two who might be familiar with that germ you mentioned-"

Neji's voice abruptly cut in. "There's a man at the door. He's been there approximately three minutes now."

The team snapped to readiness. "Shinobi?" asked Sakura and Konohamaru together.

Neji's Byakugan narrowed. "I did not mention him earlier because it seems unlikely, but he might yet be eavesdropping."

The Boss and the Builder shared a look. "I'll get the door," said Inari.

"I'll back you up," said Naruto.

Both men approached the front door, the ninja poised just short of line-of-sight. Right before Inari's hand reached the handle there finally came the faintest knocking on the far side. Konohamaru thought he could see whoever it was jerk in surprise when the door opened immediately.

"Hari!" boomed Inari's voice jovially. "Good to see you, and good timing too! Come in, come in." The artisan led their visitor to the dining room entrance, right next to the Boss. "Everyone, this is Harimatsu Migorigi, my harbormaster and deputy manager," Inari informed them, beaming. "Hari, this is Naruto Uzumaki and some of his ninja from the Leaf Village!"

It was, in Konohamaru's opinion, such a big-sounding name for such a _small_ man. Not in size, for though he was rather spindly, at his full height Harimatsu was probably taller than anyone but Neji. It took a moment to realize this fact, however, due to his tremendous slouch -huddled, really, as if he were constantly bracing for an attack. Enormous crooked spectacles magnified eyes caught in a permanent wince, making him sharply resemble a timid little mouse.

Granted, when he heard the Boss's name this image was counteracted somewhat; his eyes widened, he stood a little straighter and a genuine smile lit up his face. "The famous Naruto? From the Bridge?" He hastily adjusted his glasses (so they sat crooked the other way) and thrust out his hand. "Wow, it's amazing to finally-!" But suddenly he hitched. He blinked once. Then as quickly as he'd inflated he shrank even further than before. He shot a nervous glance between all of them, flinched at least twice, and mumbled, "I-I mean… it's a ple… pleasure to meet you… um, all." Konohamaru saw his own puzzlement reflected in the Boss, who nonetheless shook Harimatsu's now-stiff hand.

"Come and have a seat, Hari, we're just in the middle of dinner," continued Inari, gesturing toward an open spot.

Hari fidgeted. "Um, n-no, I- -thank you, but, no, that is, I- -I'm just here to, to deliver the, um… the news." He took off his glasses, pulled a cloth from his pocket and became very intent on cleaning the lenses, a habit Konohamaru recognized from Udon when his teammate was extremely uncomfortable.

Inari seemed to pick up on this too, for a trace of uncertainty grew behind his smile. "What is it, Hari? The _Pride_ has come in, hasn't she? I saw her arrive in the harbor."

"O-oh yes, um, no… no problems there -r-right on schedule, safe and, and sound…" Apparently convinced his glasses could be no cleaner, Hari grew still and stared at his feet. "…but her cargo has gone missing."

Tsunami drew in a sharp breath. Inari's smile had dissolved. "…What, _all_ of it?" he asked weakly. "What about the checkpoints? What about the guards we hired?"

The harbormaster fidgeted, took a deep breath and explained all in a rush, "The ship arrived whole and offloaded her entire manifest which the sailors moved directly into the warehouse all under guard as we had planned." He paused and fidgeted again. "…By the time I arrived, the… the warehouse was, was empty."

Inari sat back with the look of a man who'd been slapped and drained of blood. He stared beyond the room's walls as though he scanned the harbor far beyond.

At that moment, because of his perspective Konohamaru barely saw Hari's eyes roll up and focus intently. He traced the line of sight to Kichita, saw something flicker between them- -before both sharply broke eye contact.

Konohamaru frowned, but shoved it to the back of his mind. Sakura and Naruto were pressing questions about security and the unloading process, and Inari, who recovered himself somewhat, began to answer them politely and dismissively. "Look, don't worry about it," he sighed eventually as he put on the same grim smirk. "This sort of thing happens when you're a merchant." He turned to his subordinate. "Hari? Offer still stands -join us for dinner?"

If possible the other man grimaced even further. "Ah, n- …no, I… I better get down to the office and, and crunch the numbers on the… the, uh…" He trailed off helplessly, mumbled a 'good evening' with another nervous glance among them, and departed without another word. Inari went with him to the door, shaking his head wryly when he returned.

Choji arched an eyebrow. "Nervous little fellow, isn't he?"

"He's not exactly the boldest guy around, that's true," agreed Inari, "but he's a good man. He's been my friend since… I s'pose it was a couple days after the Great Bridge was finished that we met." He took his seat again. "To be honest I'm surprised he didn't stay -he's always been a huge fan of yours, Naruto."

"He just hates delivering bad news," said Tazuna. He leveled a pointed look at Inari. "And he's been delivering a lot of it lately." The younger man winced and tried to wave off his grandfather's comment.

Hinata leaned forward. "You mentioned guards and checkpoints," she said. "H-have your ships been robbed before?"

"Every merchant gets held up by pirates once in a while," Inari replied evasively.

"But Inari's ships have developed a disturbing habit of losing cargo," Tazuna sternly interjected again. "He's being targeted."

"Gapol…" Kichita, who'd been sitting quietly withdrawn since the harbormaster's report, suddenly muttered the name as darkly as a curse.

"_Kichita,_" scolded Inari sharply. "You know how I feel about that."

His wife had the look of someone who dearly wanted to argue a point, but she pursed her lips, nodded curtly and left for the kitchen.

"That merchant from this afternoon mentioned Gapol too," observed the Boss. "Who is he?"

Inari's lip curled down on one side. "Gapol is… another merchant, in the shipping business," he answered hesitantly.

"Come on, Inari," said Tazuna gruffly. "Tell them the whole story, or I will."

The younger craftsman blew out a long breath. "…Gapol was my first harbormaster," he said eventually, "and a darn good one too. Things were going well until a disagreement between the two of us made him leave the company and go into business for himself. He's now a competitor in the market."

"Your _only_ competitor," added the older man. Tazuna turned a hard look on the rest of them. "And as for the 'disagreement', Gapol tried to get Inari to raise his prices -for the villagers, his own neighbors!- to absurd levels. When my grandson refused, Gapol accused him of _running an illegal monopoly_ and left him in the dust without so much as a look over his shoulder! That man is as greedy and selfish as they come!"

But Inari fiercely shook his head. "Yes, grandfather, Gapol is ambitious, and yes he is misguided right now. But he is, or at least was, _my friend_ -I have to believe in him more than that!" Konohamaru saw the corners of Naruto's eyes tighten.

"Still," observed Choji from behind his plate, "Tazuna's got a point; it sounds like Gapol definitely has the motive to try and put you out of business."

"Choji," Hinata piped up suddenly, "i-if Inari doesn't want to talk about it, we shouldn't force him to. S-sakura, Tsunami wanted our help with the dumplings." Sakura murmured her agreement. The kunoichi threw surreptitious glances, Hinata at her husband, Sakura at Inari, before they stood and left the room. Both men seemed lost in thought. Choji continued to munch, while Tazuna intently worked one of his chopsticks with a thumbnail. Neji remained quiet, meditative, and almost painfully erect in his corner.

* * *

Dinner didn't last much longer after that. Inari set them up with rooms and then departed, mentioning a long walk and some fresh air. Kichita followed him out the door.

Konohamaru had stowed his gear and stepped out into the hallway when Tazuna's voice drifted past his ears. The junior jonin crossed the short distance to the Uzumakis' doorway, where he saw the old carpenter facing the Boss and Boss-Lady sitting on their bed and Sakura leaning against the wall.

"…truth of it is, he's nearly broke," Tazuna was saying. Konohamaru could only see the back of his head, but his tone was grim. "He's putting a brave face on it, but if these predations keep up any longer Inari could lose everything."

"W-why would he try to hide this from us?" asked Hinata.

Sakura pursed her lips. "He doesn't want to distract us from our own mission."

The carpenter's gray head bobbed. "As a friend, Inari could never ask Naruto to call off rescuing his children to deal with what he sees as just a run of terrible luck. But as his grandfather, I'm too concerned about him to leave the question unasked; please, even if it's while you're conducting your own investigation, do whatever you can to help Inari."

Suddenly Konohamaru thought Tazuna's voice sounded all too familiar, and a different Old Man came to mind. He noticed the Boss being unusually quiet, so he spoke up. "Well, why not? We can kill two birds with one stone!" Tazuna jumped and turned toward him, all other eyes in his wake. At Sakura's pursed lips, he continued. "I mean, doesn't it sound to anyone else like these robberies are shinobi work? It's not that big a stretch to guess they might be exactly who we're looking for."

Sakura grimaced. "If they are, that'll probably make them mercenaries or nomads."

"And if they're not our guys they may at least know who's muscling in on their turf." Naruto nodded, smirked. "Good enough for me. Got any leads for us?" he asked, looking up at the builder.

Tazuna managed to hide his relief behind a scowling mask. "Well, Inari won't like it, but there's a reason several of us have started calling Gapol the second Gato. I wouldn't put it past him for a minute."

"Yeah, we gathered as much from dinner," waved the Boss. "Anything else?"

"Hmm… Well, I suppose there's-"

The sound of voices from the entrance hall interrupted his thought -voices, and a familiar-sounding bark. "That'll be Kiba and Akamaru," said Sakura, crossing to the door. Konohamaru moved aside.

They paused to glance at Naruto, but he just put a hand on his Lady's knee, glanced between them all and said, "Go ahead. We'll talk more in the morning."

Tazuna nodded and followed the two ninja from the room. When they arrived at the front door they saw the canine duo being greeted by Choji and Tsunami.

"Naruto said you'd be coming," Tsunami was saying, "so I made sure to keep a…" -her eyes widened and she gave a small giggle- "…'doggy' bag for you."

Kiba barked a laugh. (Akamaru just barked and wagged his tail.) "That's perfect, thanks a lot." The matron smiled, scratched Akamaru's ear and departed for the kitchen.

The carpenter stepped forward and extended a hand. "You must be Kiba Inuzuka then." (_Arf!_) "And Akamaru," he amended with a grin. "You're a lot bigger than I expected, boy. Name's Tazuna, pleased to meet you."

"Likewise," Kiba replied as he shook. He glanced at Sakura. "Anything new?"

"Sounds like our host is being harried by ninja." She shrugged. "It's as likely a place to start as any, so we're investigating Gapol, the other shipping magnate in town. Other than that, you tell me."

The wild ninja grimaced. "Hate to say it, but I hope we did miss something, because we sure didn't find much."

"Not too surprising," Neji said calmly. Konohamaru started; he hadn't seen the Hyuuga in the corner.

Kiba shot him a surly look. "Love to see you do better," he scoffed.

A faint smile. "We shall see. I shall take over scouting for the night. The two of you should have your meal and rest."

Sakura cleared her throat before Kiba could fire back a quip. "More to the point, you found no sign of any ninja at all?"

"Couple places where you could possibly start a base, but no one home as far as we could smell."

"Then either our pirates aren't shinobi after all, or odds are better they're the evasion-intrusion specialists we're after," nodded Choji thoughtfully.

"My thoughts exactly," Neji said. "Now, if I may have the location of Gapol's office…?"

Once Tazuna had told him, Sakura spoke up. "Remember Neji, this is the preliminary sweep. On the slight chance they don't already know we're here, we'd like to keep it that way as long as possible."

The Hyuuga inclined his head politely- "Of course." -and disappeared.

The group dispersed, Kiba and Akamaru heading for the kitchen with Choji in tow, Konohamaru wandering off and Sakura returning to her room. Only Tazuna was left, puzzling at the empty space. "I know ninja are quick, but how'd he do that indoors…?"

* * *

Konohamaru settled down onto his bedroll and tried to calm his nerves and drown out Choji's snoring. He didn't understand why he was so jumpy all of a sudden, especially after the enthusiasm he'd felt all day. He'd been on difficult and dangerous assignments before, and with far less support than the Hokage and five more of the Leaf Twelve.

He chuckled to himself, a soft sound that was swallowed up in the Akamichi's rumble. Who was he kidding? _He_ was the support here, a greenhorn jonin dabbling with players far out of his league. To be honest he was still surprised the Boss had let him come.

Naruto… as his mind drifted next door into the Uzumakis' room, Konohamaru couldn't help but think of the conversation he'd partly overheard through the wall an hour ago. He couldn't tell if they were talking about finding the kids, Inari's troubles, or Hinata's sudden collapse in the street, but though it was a quiet debate it was a heated one. He could only really discern Naruto's voice, and the Boss sounded worried.

The Boss- -Naruto- _never_ sounded worried.

He blew out a long breath and watched the steady rise and fall of his roommate's chest. Choji's face looked content. Neji was still out surveying the town, and if he got up and walked to the room's window he could see where Kiba and Akamaru had opted to sleep outdoors tonight. None of them seemed as worked up or nervous as Konohamaru felt about all this. He reminded himself that the Boss would be back to his indomitable self in the morning, and resolved to do whatever he could to help the team.

In the meantime, he quit fighting Choji's snore and let the deep rhythmic sound rumble through his ears. The effect was surprising soothing; Konohamaru felt himself drowsing off as he stared out into the night.

Soon now, very soon, their mission would begin in earnest.

* * *

Beady eyes narrowed like sinkholes in the white headband. "Would you care to repeat that?"

The bandit's lip twitched. "We didn't get him," he replied sulkily.

The ninja sighed irritably. His breather mask turned it into a tinny hiss. "That, I can believe. It could have been a simple job. Grandstand, draw him out, kill him in the street brawl. You should have been good at that, but I forgot who I was dealing with. You're all talk and no action, Ruzo, a second-rater even among cutthroats."

Ruzo's face began to color -vividly- but he set his jaw and wisely kept his tongue.

"What I _can't_ believe, is that a coward like you mustered the gall to crawl back here, tell us you failed miserably, and demand payment for your humiliation."

"Our brother is in prison," hissed Jibi, standing close behind Ruzo and tugging his pink lock anxiously.

"Careful, that's two strikes against you," said one of the others with a dark chuckle. The metallic echo made it even more unnerving. "The three of you sold out your own mother to bounty hunters. You have no morals -it's why we hired you."

"We didn't deliver, but neither did you!" Ruzo bit out. "If you had been there to bail us out as you promised-"

"You're going to blame us for your blunder?" countered the first ninja, his voice growing sharp. "If your pathetic band can be wiped out so easily by civilian _worms_, I don't see why we should bother-"

"You didn't tell us he would have shinobi guards!"

Silence.

The lead ninja's eyes narrowed again. "Explain. Now."

"We were ambushed without warning! The blond one took out Shu with that spinning thing before we even saw-"

All three shinobi jerked as though they'd been shocked. "Were they Leaf? What was his name?" snarled the leader.

Ruzo hesitated, glanced between them and shared a look with Jibi. Both brothers smirked and stood a little straighter. "Well well, looks like we know something of value after all," lilted Ruzo airily. "So let's make a trade, shall we? Our fee, full and up front, for the name."

None of their employers answered him, only stared. He became suddenly conscious that the three surrounded the two when the shinobi seemed to creep, flowing, toward them. The one behind and left reached for something-

"A-all right," Ruzo stammered, his smile faltering. "H… half our fee."

The reaching one paused, his one exposed eye rolling toward the leader. At the barest nod, he pulled a small pouch from behind his back. He shook it once, and it clinked.

Immensely relieved to see the little bag, Ruzo rolled his shoulders and relaxed. "Yeah, they're Leaf," he said easily, "and one of them is the famous one, the one the Bridge is named after."

"Naruto Uzumaki…" breathed the leader. He drew a kunai and began to work it between his fingers absently.

Jibi prodded. Ruzo shoved him back a step and flashed him an evil look, then smoothed over his smile and finally added, "Would you like to know how many there were?" The ninja recoiled in disgust as if he'd just noticed the thugs for the first time. "Or we could take another shot at the Ship-"

He jerked as the pouch of coins spilled across his feet. "Take your money and get out of my sight," rasped the leader, venom practically dripping from his mask.

Ruzo threw Jibi to the dirt where he scooped up the coins, and the two fled as quickly as they would let themselves.

The lead ninja watched them go. "Kagari," he called once they were out of earshot.

"Yeah?"

"Our hired scum wanted to bargain. I think that's only fair. Half their fee… for half their blood. Go complete our trade, would you?"

His teammate chuckled and began to turn when their third member spoke up. "Now now, Oboro, they did give us a valuable piece of information."

"Excellent point, Mubi. Maybe they do deserve a discount." He half-turned back to the left. "What do you think, Kagari, thirty seconds head-start?"

They didn't need to see his face to know the twisted grin there. "'Head' start. Right…" He glided away, melting to the ground and out of sight.

"Heh. What a stroke of luck, eh Oboro? Of all people to run into out here…"

_Uzumaki_… Oboro heard dripping and realized he'd held his knife too tightly. He reached up and traced a bloodied finger down each stripe of his Rain emblem.

"Hey now, don't forget we have a mission here."

Oboro nodded absently. Of course, the mission took priority.

But soon, oh so soon, vengeance would be theirs.

* * *

Dark. Even after… however long they'd been there, Keidyan still couldn't see all of their cramped little cell. There were no windows to outside, and the only light came from some weird glowing blue moss on the walls. It reminded him of a cave he'd seen once, but the walls were straight and smooth.

Damp. The moss was cool to the touch, but mostly dry. The air wasn't too moist either, but Hizumi had been crying into his shirt since she'd woken up.

Keidyan hugged his sister close and threw a dirty look to his left over her head. The eyes were back again, a pair of inky black pools watching them through the barred gap in their cell door. None of the moss-light reached out there; the eyes were the only thing he'd seen beyond their room.

The eyes held his glare evenly without blinking. The eyes never blinked. Never narrowed, never smiled… The eyes seemed as void of emotion as they were of color. Keidyan didn't like them.

"Well?" he snapped finally. He felt Hizumi jump but he ignored it. "What are you staring at, huh? Come on in here and I'll make your eyes blacker!"

Low, very slow laughter filled the cell. "You really are his son." The voice belonged to a man, he thought, and though it was quiet it stood out sharply against the silence.

Unsure how to take that, Kei settled for "Yeah, so what?"

Nothing but more staring. Keidyan was just gritting his teeth when he realized he could hear the faint sound of more voices. The eyes must have too, because they turned away and disappeared. Kei pulled Zumi back a little and held a finger to his lips. She bit her lip, nodded and tried to calm her sniffling.

They crept as quietly as they could toward the door -along the wall, low, to stay out of sight. Kei peered through as much of the window as he could; no sign of the eyes.

"…arrived…day…proximately noon," one voice was saying.

"Are our agents aware?" asked a second. They seemed to be drawing closer.

"They reported his arrival."

"Have them keep him chasing his tails. It wouldn't do to have the Hokage move too quickly."

Keidyan felt his spirits surge. "HA!" he crowed at the top of his lungs. "I knew it! My dad's in town and he's coming to kick all your butts!"

_**WHAM!**_ The kids jerked away from the trembling cell door. The eyes had reappeared, and they finally held an emotion: raw, smoldering anger.

"I'm counting on it."

* * *

Have I recaptured your attention? :P

In all seriousness though, I'm sorry to leave you cliff-hanging like this, and sorrier yet because I'm not going to be able to touch this for another month and a half. Fortunately, it'll be summer after that, and I've already got a 1000 word headstart on Chapter 4, a section that I started writing for this update but figured it would do better to start the next.

I'd like to thank you all again for your patience and kind reviews thus far. Regretfully, I have not yet had the luxury to give you all the personal replies I believe you deserve, and I think it unlikely that I will find the time to clear my backlog in this same month and a half before finals. So I guess I'll leave you all with a blanket message for now: Thank you for your opinions, your critiques and your compliments. I hope I've backed up my claim that I **will not** leave this story unfinished, and if I don't reply to your reviews (you will leave reviews, won't you?) wish me luck -I'm probably in need of it.

See you when I see you,  
~ArcTheJedi


	4. Land of Waves: Investigation

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...I hope I still have readers... -_-'

Reasons why I'm (so very unforgivably) late uploading:  
-**Start of the school year hit me like a ton of bricks.** I don't recall a busier semester in my academic career. As an indirect consequence, my schedule is abnormal enough that I still don't have an entirely regular time of week to devote to my writing...  
-_I am an uncle for the second time and my second niece was born the day after my birthday celebration and she's adorable and my first niece loves her very much even if she does get a little jealous sometimes._  
-Remember how my little Author's Note said I had 8 pages written and I expected 15 total? ...I nearly cleared 24 complete pages.  
-I tried a new writing strategy that I thought might speed up the process quite a bit. ...It actually practically doubled time-to-completion. Yeah, not doing that again.

Good News:  
-I'm starting to get a grasp on my workload and I've actually tentatively picked out a couple blocks of time I can usually use to write. Not a lot, but better than the first couple of months. I've also started experimenting with ways to overcome writer's block, with varying success.  
-I've decided that I really am trying to pack too much into each update. I'm going to start looking for chapter break points once I hit around 12 pages, which should significantly reduce the delay between chapters. It means there will be less to read, too, but I'm going to try this trade off for now.  
-Next chapter is going to be full of action! Several battles, including the first ones I've written around characters other than Naruto! I'm looking forward to stretching my brain with some creative new fighting styles, and as an added bonus I tend to write action faster than intrigue, if memory serves correctly.

**Disclaimer: I played a couple of the Naruto video games once or twice. ...I don't own those either.**

To those of you I haven't chased off with my lousy update speed, enjoy!

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* * *

BZZzzzzzZZzzzz…Bzz…bzzzZZZZzz…_

Shikamaru's brow twitched as he watched the fly rattle along the window pane behind the Hokage's desk. He followed it carefully, studying every flit and jump and spasm of movement. Everything has a pattern; even complete randomness is in itself consistent, and if something is not completely random it follows there must be moments of pattern…

Tsunade's brow twitched, too. "So what you're telling me is that we've learned _nothing?_"

Ibiki didn't look any more pleased by his own report. "All we've managed to conclude is that none of the spies we captured know anything about the kidnapping or the attempt on the Hokage. Since we've got captives from every non-allied Village -several of them high-ranking shinobi- these findings are disturbing."

The Acting-Hokage pressed her fingertips together and narrowed her eyes. "I suppose we should have expected this. The only agent we can confirm was Zetsu, and it's unlikely any legitimate power would want anything to do with an Akatsuki, especially an original."

_Bzz-BZZzzzZZzzZZzzzz…_ Another point for randomness.

Tsunade raised her eyes. "You're confident in your findings, then? You're sure of your methods?"

The horribly scarred master of interrogations blinked. "Quite sure."

_bzzzZZZzzz…bzzz…_

Tsunade sighed and leaned back in her chair, looking very old for a moment. "I apologize, Ibiki. When I look at you I still remember the Academy student fresh out of diapers. It's too easy for me to forget how proficient and imposing you've become."

"No offense taken, ma'am. It will still be a few days until some of my measures take full effect, but at this point I don't expect any change in these results. Allowing for seven possible exceptions, we believe none of them are even aware there is an issue with Sixth, let alone that he's departed from the Village."

From her customary place behind her lady, Shizune nodded. "Since he rounded most of them up in person that's not surprising." _BZZZzz-_ "-And are you going to swat that thing or not?" she snapped these last words toward Shikamaru.

Without shifting a lazy muscle, he replied, "When I have the pattern."

_BzzZZZZZzzz…bzz…bzz…_

It'd be easy to approach and swat the fly, because then the fly stops acting on its own idiosyncratic behavior and instinctively reacts to your threat; if you understand flies it's simple to spook one into jumping right into your… Shikamaru's eyes narrowed. "A while back I was contracted to deal with some cattle thieves raiding a group of ranches," he began suddenly. "The raiders were actually pretty clever for common thugs. They'd spend days spreading out bits of meat to lure wolf packs to the area, and when the wolves finally set in on the herds they'd carry off a few calves in the confusion." He turned his steady stare on Ibiki. "The wolves didn't realize they were being used. Out of everyone we've got in custody, who had the least significant mission? Who went after the least sensible targets?"

Ibiki considered only a moment before responding. "There was one Stone chunin we caught trying to sneak toward Hokage Tower. He broke under questioning almost immediately, and we determined both that he lacked any specific target or directive and more importantly that he hadn't learned anything of significance." The ANBU's eyes gleamed; he had the dangerous look of a hunting animal that had scented both prey and predator. "The only one from his Village, in fact. We've been overlooking him because we assumed the Stone were too absorbed in their internal struggles to spare sufficient personnel. Our own network on them is so tight we've also been assuming we'd have had ample warning if they were up to something."

"Sounds to me like a perfect reason to outsource some mercs," agreed Shikamaru. _BzzzZZZzzz…_ He turned back to the window just long enough to flick a paperclip. _Bzzz-(Plink!)_ The fly dropped. Shikamaru smirked.

"How much guard is this Stone ninja under?" Tsunade was pressing.

"If his sole purpose is to get out a single message? Not enough," growled Ibiki. He brought a hand to his mouth and spoke tersely into the radio in the glove. He gave the Acting-Hokage a curt nod, turned on his heel and departed.

Udon spoke up from his desk, looking puzzled. "Wait, I don't understand. What's been deduced? Why is this Stone ninja so important?"

Shizune exchanged a look with her lady and explained. "What we know of the Stone Village right now is that they're in the midst of some sort of power struggle, a split between two factions. That sort of conflict is rarely solved by force -neither side wants to deplete the resources they'll command if they win." She shook her head. "Legal debates aside, the deciding factor is usually a sufficient display of political power."

"And kidnapping the children of the Sixth Hokage -one of the most powerful shinobi in history- from right under his nose would be pretty impressive, don't you think?" finished Tsunade, a dour undertone in her voice.

Udon's frown turned perplexed. "If the Stone are behind it, aren't sensei and Konohamaru chasing a false lead?"

"Maybe. Maybe not." Shikamaru shrugged, closed his eyes and lounged back. "Ibiki said it himself; we've got ANBU intel agents watching their _cats_ right now. The Sand have their own web of spies in place, and so does every other Village -what they can spare from watching us, that is. At this point it'll be impossible for the mercs to get the kids into the Stone Village."

Shizune's brow furrowed. "These mercenaries snuck past our home defenses twice without detection. Can we really be certain they won't do the same in the Land of Earth?"

The lazy ninja cracked an eye in her direction. "Could you smuggle Naruto's son against his will across a hostile border quietly, without drawing any sort of attention?" Shizune conceded the point.

"More importantly," Tsunade cut in, "here they took us by surprise and considerable distraction. Our spies surrounding the Stone Village will be alert, informed, and reinforced by our Sand allies. Discretion will not be an option."

"So what do you do when the drop zone is too hot for delivery? You find a safe house and wait for opportunity," concluded Shikamaru. "That's where our prisoner comes into play." He guessed Udon's expression and continued, "See, the Stone are effectively cut off from the world. They've got no way to know whether their job was a bust or a success, so they put their own wolf in the pack; the guy probably knows absolutely nothing about the kidnapping, but he just has to be smart enough and observant enough to send back that something's gone wrong for us. Whoever sent him will know they won and go ahead with whatever plan they've got to retrieve the kids." He sighed. "We can keep them guessing by keeping their agent stifled, but I doubt we've bought much time -Naruto has surely made a spectacle of himself by now, and his antics will send the message just as clearly."

"And there's the biggest problem," murmured Tsunade, planting her elbows and meshing her fingers. "The Hokage away from home is one thing, but if the other Villages learn the reason for his absence? …The Stone aren't the only ones who would consider the kids a grand prize."

Shizune wore a sour face. "I hate to say it, but there's also the possibility we're on completely the wrong track."

_bzzzzzZZZZZzzzzZZzzzz…_

Shikamaru's brow twitched.

* * *

"No, it's no secret that the people favor Inari over me," said Mayor Hyo as he stirred his tea. He wore a natty brown suit, the start of a black goatee, thick calluses on his hands, and shoes that were dressy but scuffed. "It is, after all, a comparison of the reason for our Golden Age-" he caught himself and nodded toward Naruto with a gracious smile "-excuse me, _one_ of the reasons, against the man obliged to levy taxes occasionally." Satisfied, he set the stirring stick aside and breathed deep of the steam. "The simple truth of it is that the only reason I got this office is because Inari didn't want it -supported me instead. He and I think alike on most things, so the townsfolk were happy to settle for second-best," he said before taking a sip.

"I-I'm sorry," stammered Hinata. She and her husband sat in mismatched chairs across a pine coffee table from the mayor in the decently furnished little study-like office. "That must be hard for you to live with."

Hyo waved her off. "Don't worry, I knew what I was getting when I signed up," he chuckled. "The only reason our sleepy little village grew large enough to need a formal mayor in the first place is because of Inari. I'm much beholden to him, as is everyone in the Land of Waves."

"If that's the case," began Naruto slowly, staring into his own cup of tea as he swirled it idly, "then why is someone trying to put him out of business?"

The mayor's smile hitched, flipped into a sad sort of grimace. "An unfortunate side effect of progress," he sighed.

Naruto stopped swirling and shot the mayor a puzzled look. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Hero worship fades, Lord Hokage." Sip. "I can tell you for certain that no one who lived here before the Bridge was built would cause any trouble for Inari. Prosperity aside, he united this community and brought them out of a dark time they won't ever forget." He set his tea down slowly. "But with prosperity comes growth, a whole new generation, most of them immigrants who never knew Gato's heel. These people came here for the promise of opportunity. Because of his fame and status, Inari has become the symbol of economy in the Land of Waves; when business does well, they praise him…"

"…and when it does poorly, they blame him," finished Hinata softly.

Hyo shared a grim smirk with her. "I'm afraid it didn't help first impressions that for a while he _was_ the sole dealer in the shipping industry."

Naruto frowned as he remembered Tazuna's words from the night before. _'Gapol accused him of running an illegal monopoly and left him in the dust without so much as a look over his shoulder!'_ He set them to the side for the moment and said instead, "You've been using 'they' and 'them' a lot, Mayor. How long have _you_ been living here?"

The smirk became an amused one. "I suppose I should have expected a shinobi to notice." He sat back and looked thoughtful. "My family arrived in the Land of Waves… goodness, it must have been less than two months before the Bridge was completed. We were refugees from a small village burned down by thieves, you see."

"Oh!" gasped Hinata. "I'm so sorry!"

"Hm? Oh, don't worry about it -it wasn't much of a life we left behind. Anyway, Gato deigned to let my parents buy a dilapidated little hovel, but before we got settled enough to have an income to extort Tazuna's pet project captured his whole attention, and, well, you know the rest…" He chuckled and took another sip of tea.

Naruto thought for a moment. "I get it. You don't feel you've lived here long enough to identify with the original villagers."

The mayor nodded amiably. "But at the same time, we _were_ at the Bridge with everyone else. I earned one of my greatest friends that day, when he came to practically strangers and knocked on our door anyway."

"I-I see," said Hinata. "If you would, please, what can you tell us about Gapol? W-we've heard about his falling out with Inari, but do you think he would cause this sort of trouble?"

Hyo grimaced and paused to deliberate. "…As the mayor of our town, I'm obligated to be impartial. To that effect, I have to point out that Gapol and his company have generated a lot of wealth for the Land of Waves since his arrival six months after completion of the Bridge, that he has always faithfully paid his dues and taxes, and that he has never been caught in any illegal practices." He hesitated, then leaned forward with a gleam in his eye. "…And you most certainly did _not_ just hear any special emphasis on the word 'caught'."

The door behind the shinobi opened. A lanky man with mousy teeth and neatly-parted black hair poked his head into the study. "Mr. Mayor? You have another appointment waiting in the lobby."

"Ah, thank you. Tell them I'll be with them in a moment, would you?" The door closed again, and the mayor turned back to his guests. "I'm afraid I'll need to be going here soon, but first is there anything more I can help you with?"

A sudden thought struck Naruto. "Yeah, actually. What's the deal with this Peacekeeper, uh…" he began to snap his fingers, trying to recall the name.

"Koribu," Hinata supplied.

"Koribu! That's the one. What kind of person is he? Why were his people late yesterday?"

The question seemed to put a horridly bitter taste in the mayor's mouth. He leaned back heavily against his chair and drew in a long breath. "Ah, the Peacekeepers," he sighed. He rubbed his forehead for a second before looking the Hokage in the eye. "I'm afraid you've hit upon the one issue where Inari and I completely disagree. Founding the Peacekeepers has been my primary source of ridicule among the populace, as well as what I view as my most crucial act of office."

Hinata cocked her head to one side. "I-I don't understand. The Peacekeepers are a simple unit of law enforcement, a-aren't they?"

"Indeed, and one most people view as unnecessary -Inari foremost in their number." Hyo spoke with the same grim smirk. He gestured helplessly. "And if we were only the villagers that lived here before the Bridge, they would be right. Under Gato they had nothing. When they -we- stood together, we gained everything. From then on everyone in town supported each other -it was unthinkable that anyone should have cause to commit a crime in such a community!" He waved dismissively. "Oh, certainly disagreements arose now and then, but Inari was always on hand to mediate and alleviate."

"Sounds like a sweet deal. So what's the problem?" prompted Naruto.

But it was Hinata who answered, nodding thoughtfully with pursed lips. "You… you're worried that, with all the new immigrants and foreigners, eventually Inari's name and presence won't be enough to keep the peace."

"Exactly. And especially with his current financial crisis. Unfortunately, very few people realize how fragile Inari's influence is becoming."

"And Koribu is, what, one of the loyal fans?" quipped Naruto.

The mayor spoke in a tone that was simultaneously official and mildly annoyed, though his face suggested it was subject matter and not present company causing the irritation. "Seto Koribu finds himself chief officer of the peace in what he still sees as a small village with no problems to speak of other than Inari is _not_ its mayor or chief officer of the peace."

The Hokage snorted. "Hard to be a Substitution to someone else's Shadow Clone…"

"I don't quite understand the parlance, but that sounds like the gist of it."

"I-Inari told us he is a good man, when w-we asked about him."

Hyo glanced at the Lady, considered a moment, then carefully said, "If you haven't already noticed, Inari tends to be overly optimistic." He inclined his head in an abbreviated shrug. "For example, 'good man' was also his first assessment of Ruzo, until irrevocably disproven." He held up a calloused hand. "In this case, however, I believe he is right. Seto is competent, able-bodied, and his heart is in the right place; he just doesn't think the rest of him is."

The door swung open again. "Mr. Mayor-"

"Yes, yes, I haven't forgotten, Wong. Thank you." The mousy aide took on an exasperated look, but closed the door again without comment. Naruto wondered if this interaction was common between the two. Hyo turned an apologetic expression on them. "I don't wish to rush you out of here-"

"And we've no wish to keep you from your other appointments," said Hinata hurriedly, bowing formally in her chair.

Naruto nodded curtly as he stood. "Yeah, thanks for your help."

The mayor shared another affable smile. "Gladly given. If you need anything else, my door is always open for you."

As Naruto and Hinata departed, they passed by the mousy aide at his desk in the lobby. He seemed to have been in conversation with the man seated in one of the waiting chairs. The mayor's next appointment was a short man in an immaculate green business suit and ivory necktie, with a long beaded ponytail draped artfully over one shoulder. Apparently he didn't like to be kept waiting; he broke off his discussion with the mayor's aide to sneer disdainfully at the shinobi in passing. _What's _his_ problem?_ Rankled, Naruto nearly stopped to demand this out loud, but a warning tug from Hinata checked him; when he looked again the businessman had turned and headed for his appointment. Naruto settled for a dismissive snort in his direction before following his wife out of the building.

The mayor's house (the town hadn't gotten around to an official capital building yet) was in a relatively private corner of a newly constructed neighborhood of mid- to high-class homes. Though the morning sun was obscured behind a fair cloud cover and it looked like it might rain later, housewives and the occasional maid greeted their neighbors and passersby brightly. Apart from these small knots of villagers, however, the street was practically empty; the main thoroughfare several blocks over had been vibrant with activity for hours now, the distant roar of the bazaar and various markets forming a background thrum as far as the edges of town.

The shinobi walked into the quiet streets in silence for several steps, until they judged they were out of collective earshots. Hinata spoke first. "What do you think?"

"Nothing much we didn't expect to hear."

"But that's not why we went, right?" Hinata persisted, studying his face.

Naruto frowned and thought back over the course of the conversation, the mayor's words and his first impression of the man. "…My gut says to trust him. He's a little strange, maybe, but I think he's all right."

She nodded easily. "So do you think Gapol really is behind it all?"

He rolled his shoulders in a sort of half-shrug. "With so many fingers pointing at him it's hard not to." As they continued on their way he thought further back, to a memory that darkened his face. "Besides, he reeks a little too much of this town's last tyrant… Hinata?" Abruptly Naruto became aware that his wife was no longer beside him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw her leaning heavily against a lamppost, looking dazed and short of breath. A little hard knot worked its way into his stomach. "_Hinata…_"

But Hinata had straightened almost as soon as he turned, and though she staggered the first step she walked briskly past him without a word, her cheeks flushed but her face stolid. Naruto drew a deep, worried sigh before hurrying after her. _'Travel fatigue' the Mountain's hidden foot._ He'd been only barely willing to let that excuse slide last night, and only because Hinata had adamantly assured him it wouldn't happen again. If these dizzy spells were going to become regular, however…

Two or three minutes of winding streets and alleys later he caught up to her, but just as he opened his mouth she spoke over him, never breaking her purposeful stride. "S- -Sakura should be done with her interview by now. We should meet up with her and hear what she found out. Where did Inari say that botanist's shop was?"

The sudden change of subject distracted him and his stern words died in his mouth as he realized, sheepishly, that he'd forgotten the address. "Er… Ah. Never mind, there he is now."

By now they'd reentered the merchant district. As they stepped from the alleyway, through the busy and bustle they could see Inari and Kichita across the street. They were speaking to a short, stocky man in front of a store with mannequins displaying the latest fashions in the window. The man's face was agitated, and Inari's and Kichita's postures were tense. Frowning, Naruto stopped Hinata from advancing into the street, and at a silent gesture the two of them used their shinobi training to pick the conversation out of the marketplace clamor.

"You're telling me you lost _another_ shipment?" demanded the merchant in disbelief.

Inari spoke evenly, in practiced tone. "It's not as bad as it sounds. The cargo made it to port this time, so it has to be in town somewhere. If you'll just give me a little more time to track it down…"

"More time?" If possible, the stocky man sounded even more aghast. "Inari, I needed those silks _last week!_ I'm already stretching the last of my reserves, and barely breaking even because of it!"

"I understand that, Kawe, really, but if you'll just allow me this one last chance to-"

But 'Kawe' clearly wasn't interested. "No, Inari, this _was_ your last chance!" He shook his head. "Look, I'm sorry, but I can't keep my business in danger any longer. I'm going to speak to Gapol."

"…Why you selfish, greedy little ingrate!" Naruto blinked in surprise. Kichita's body shook with anger as she spoke. "Have you forgotten who got you on your feet in this business of yours in the first place? Who built this very shop for you? And now even though you know just how badly Inari's got it, the moment it looks like you're going to dip into the red you're going to just dump him in the dust?"

The merchant was also caught off guard, but he quickly recovered himself and his face flushed red. "I think I've been more than patient here. I've placed the same orders again and again and never said a word about 'delays' or 'misplacements.' I've never asked for any late fees despite every reason and opportunity to, and I've stayed onboard with your shipping far longer than any sane businessman would have under the circumstances." His voice was growing livid. "I did all this only because of our friendship, and if this is the thanks I'm going to get for it-"

Inari interjected, still with his level business tone. "I have always appreciated your business and your patience, Kawesoto, but I can't take either for granted. You've got to do what you think is best. If that's going elsewhere for your shipping…" He blew a deep breath. "Well, I just have to accept it. But even though I may lose your business, I hope our friendship can remain intact. We're still on for ramen tomorrow, right?"

Kawe blinked. The hot air drained out of him and his expression deflated into an awkward sort of grimace. "Yeah… yeah, of course, Shipbuilder. I'll be there. …I'm sorry." His eyes dropped away and he turned and ambled into his shop.

Kichita spent several quick glances between her husband and the retreating merchant before gesturing impatiently. "Quick, go after him! If you press him now he's sure to change his mind!"

Inari shook his head regretfully. "No, Kichita. I can't use our personal ties for leverage."

"How can you say that? Kawesoto is one of our core clients! You can't just let him walk away!"

"I can't make him stay, either."

Even from across the street Naruto could see the defiance light up her eyes. "And what about us, Inari? What's best for us? How are we going to pull through this?"

Inari seemed stung by the question, but whatever he was going to say in reply was drowned out by a sudden clatter in Naruto's ear. The shinobi whirled, half into a fighting stance before he realized the source of the noise; Hinata, face paler than usual, had staggered into a tall metal trash can in the alley, knocking it and its neighbor over. Naruto grimaced, but didn't have time to speak. The sound hadn't traveled far into the marketplace buzz, but several of the closest passersby turned at the disturbance and recognized the shinobi, and these people eagerly alerted those around them. He settled for quickly giving Hinata a hand to steady herself, though by now she seemed back in control.

Through the rapidly closing gaps in the growing crowd of admirers, Naruto could see Inari glance toward the disturbance. The Shipbuilder turned to his wife a moment, and Naruto made out the words, "We'll talk about this later. Go take care of your errands." Kichita stared hard at him for a handful of seconds, then raked her eyes toward the shinobi before departing without a word.

Moments later Inari had shouldered his way through the knot of villagers and dispersed them in a cascade of 'good-day's and well-wishes. Naruto was impressed his friend could grin so convincingly, given what had just transpired.

The three of them began to amble down the street before Inari asked, "So Naruto, how was your meeting with the mayor? Did you find anything that will help your search?"

Naruto glanced at Hinata, but she was busy standing erect and pretending nothing had happened. He quirked his lip and shook his head. "Not really. No mysterious thefts, no vague sightings, nothing to suggest you've even got brigands, much less shinobi ones."

The carpenter didn't quite manage to hide his 'I told you so' smirk. "I'm sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Hinata finally broke her silence. "A-actually, we were wondering if you could remind us where to find that botanist you mentioned."

"Oh sure thing." They stopped and Inari took a quick look around to get his bearings. "Let's see, uh, head down this street about three… no, four blocks, and turn left past Dempai's -he's got that two-story wood shop- and it should be right in front of you when you come out of the alley." Hinata bowed her thanks and started off, but the carpenter caught Naruto with a hand before he'd taken a step. His expression was suddenly uncomfortable and his voice lowered considerably. "Hey, Naruto… er, how much of that did you hear?"

"Enough," the ninja replied evenly. He studied his friend closely. "Are you sure you don't need help?"

The other man spread his hands wide. "Shinobi kidnapping versus possible bankruptcy. I don't know much about your world, but it's not hard to see which is more urgent. I don't know if someone's asked you to, but please don't worry about my troubles," he urged decisively.

Naruto shrugged, put his hands up behind his head and turned away. "Can't make any promises. At the moment I'm investigating any and all ninja in your town." He peered back over his shoulder. "If I find yours along with mine I might just clear up your problem along the way."

Inari's grin returned. "Fair enough."

Since Inari had business elsewhere they bid each other farewell and split off. Hinata, who'd been waiting several strides away, observed, "He looked relieved."

Naruto shook his head. "Only because he doesn't believe he's got any bandits to find."

As they followed Inari's directions, occasionally exchanging pleasantries with villagers, Naruto tried a couple times to ask Hinata if she was really all right, but each time it only provoked a Silent Treatment and rapidly increased pace. Rather than force the issue, Naruto gave up and put it off until later. They travelled the rest of the distance in silence.

They arrived just as Sakura was departing. Seamlessly falling into stride with them, the senior medic wasted no time informing them of her most important discovery: "It was planted."

"We knew that already," said Naruto nearly straight-faced. "It's why we sent you to a botanist."

Sakura flashed him a snide look tinged with amusement. "Cute." Without missing a beat she continued, "Its common name is Stem Froth. It's caused by a local insect that attacks young trees and other small plants; it's a parasite that burrows down through the base of a branch into the core of the stem. The name comes from the enzyme it excretes to do the burrowing, a caustic chemical that basically boils the plant tissue. It's rarely ever a precise process; the enzyme leaks through several spots on the stem, making the whole thing look like one big frothy mess. The damage this causes to the plant's circulatory network is almost always enough to cause an infection-like condition that-"

"Okay okay," interrupted Naruto impatiently, "so it's a bug that does nasty things to plants. What does that tell us?"

"Plenty, when you consider that we never found any trace of the insect on Zetsu. No burrow, no remains."

"Sakura, every time we've fought Zetsu in the past he's just regrown his injuries."

"I haven't forgotten. And yes, it would have been simple for him to erase the burrow and expunge the bug." She jabbed a finger pointedly. "But why not expunge the enzyme along with it? And more to the point, we found the enzyme saturated evenly throughout one isolated tissue."

"That doesn't sound like a natural occurrence," said Hinata carefully.

Naruto blinked, nodded. "So that confirms they left evidence for us to trace. They wanted us to follow them."

But Sakura shook her head, her face grim. "Worse than that. Putting aside the fact that it was hidden well enough to require skilled forensics to uncover, great pains were taken to make it look like a cellular disease -an assumption that would've collapsed the moment we got here and investigated. There was never any chance this would look like anything but intentional, controlled genetic manipulation after even the most rudimentary research." She paused for emphasis. "They not only wanted us to follow them, they wanted to make absolutely certain we knew it."

Naruto kept the realization that his grandstanding the day before had played right into their hands to himself, primarily because that's exactly the message Sakura's face was broadcasting in his direction. Studiously ignoring her, he changed the subject by filling her in on the morning's meeting with the mayor, and all that he and Hinata had heard and learned.

When he finished Sakura seemed deep in thought. "Are we sure the mayor is trustworthy?" she asked slowly.

"H-he s-seemed like an honest fellow…" supplied Hinata. The Hokage nodded his agreement.

The other kunoichi chewed her lip a moment. "I just know what Neji or Sai would point out here. 'Knocking Inari off his pedestal would be the easiest way to sell his Peacekeeper program, don't you think?'"

Naruto hitched. That… hadn't occurred to him. "I hear what you're saying…" He reached for his gut impression of the man, shook his head. "But I don't think that's what's happening here. Hyo sounded like just a good, concerned friend."

"Don't forget that he's a politician -every successful one sounds like that, corrupt or not. On top of that, he's a leader living in a hero's shadow, in a position of power that practically no one believes he deserves. It takes a pretty high caliber of a man to resist abusing his influence in that sort of situation, even for good intentions." She gave their leader a close look. "Are you _sure_ of him?"

'_I earned one of my greatest friends that day, when he came to practically strangers and knocked on our door anyway.'_ "…Yeah. Yeah, I think he's trustworthy."

A beat later, Sakura shrugged and inclined her head. "You met him in person. I'll trust your judgment." She thought for a handful of seconds and asked, "What about Koribu?"

"I was wondering about him," said Naruto, glad to finally be in the same stride. "He does resent his position –it's not much of a stretch to see him bullying the local hero to make himself seem more important."

Sakura's head bobbed as if adding another piece to the puzzle. "And his Peacekeepers keep showing up late because they're waiting for Inari to get into trouble so they can save the day –except he never does."

"B-but Naruto," cautioned Hinata, "don't forget that Mayor Hyo vouched for Koribu's character. He seemed convinced that the Peacekeeper is a good man, remember?"

The Hokage threw up his arms in exasperation. "_Everyone_ is a 'good man' in this city! The only one that nobody will vouch for is that punk Ruzo, who doesn't have the means, guts or brains to pull this off!" His voice had grown into nearly a full shout. Both startled kunoichi made gestures to quiet him; he'd drawn several curious glances with his outburst. Ignoring all the attention, Naruto broke off at right angles down the street. Up until now they'd been moving with no particular direction -a mobile conversation is harder to listen in on- but now he briskly set them toward a destination. "Let's get back to the house. I want to hear what the others have found, but unless they hit us with something out of the blue I'm betting on Gapol. Either Inari's wrong about him and _everyone else_ is right…"

"…or someone else is fooling a lot of folks too optimistic for their own good," finished Sakura, trotting to catch up.

"Or," offered Hinata softly, "we're missing something else entirely."

* * *

"Perhaps you could elaborate?"

At the utterly blank look of confusion he received, Neji tried again. "Would you explain… what you mean. Please." He'd been about to say 'in greater detail', but he judged that the man before him dealt best in monosyllables.

Dobu the dockworker, who looked as though he had the consistency of a cinder block in every possible meaning, lit up as much as his cinder block countenance would allow. "Oh! 'Course, sir, 'course. Well, it's jus' that, with the boys meeting the _Pride_ right at th' docks, an' them hustling the cargo right to the warehouse, an' them also keeping watch outside right 'till the Harbormasser comes in from the chase boat, I don' see how them boxes coulda emptied themselves 'fore Mister Hari got to 'em."

"You were part of the crew keeping watch?"

Dobu shook his head so vigorously Neji almost heard the rattling scrape of stones within. "No me, sir, I be on the day crew this week. But my good pal Mobu was on the night crew, and 'fore he turned in for the day he tol' me he swears on th' Bridge isself that no one came in nor out 'till Mister Hari came flyin' out wit' the bad news, and if Mobu says it you can be sure of it." Dobu's craggy face split into a too-large grin displaying equally craggy teeth. "He's a sharp one, he is, as sharp as meself, he is, and never nothing got past neither of us, sir."

"Clearly," Neji answered drily. "So tell me, if the night crew keeps watch outside the warehouse, who waits inside with the cargo until the Harbormaster can inspect it?" Dobu seemed taken aback, as though he had never considered the idea before. "…You do have someone watching the cargo itself during the offloading, do you not?"

"No, no, surely sir, surely. 'Course we do, makes all sort of sense…" The man's face crumpled in on itself in an approximation of concentration. Neji passed the next several minutes silently observing the dock behind him as the stocky man before him repeatedly lost count of something on his fingers. Aside from various sailors moving about and performing routine duties there was very little activity of note; due to the lack of cargo to be unpacked and organized the harbormaster had given all of the warehouse workers the day off -an efficient way to skimp on costs by avoiding daily wages, Neji suspected. In any case, apparently the charming fellow with whom he was now conversing had missed the news of his reprieve for the day.

Finally Dobu's face became somewhat less dull as some tidbit of memory struck him like an anvil. "Oh! Right! Must be the mercs from th' boat." He crossed his arms and nodded in complete satisfaction. "Now's I 'member, last time I was on th' night crew they went right in with the cargo."

"And, when did these mercenaries leave the warehouse again?" posed Neji. Dobu hitched and began to devolve into bewildered contemplation again. The Hyuuga's gaze drifted upward to the figure stirring in the dingy warehouse window above them. "Never mind. I shall ask the Harbormaster about them." Dobu didn't seem to notice him depart, lost in his own nigh-perpetual puzzlement.

Upon entering the warehouse, Neji ignored the staircase immediately to his right and set out across the cluttered floor. As he threaded his way through the aisles he carefully observed the scene with every angle of his Byakugan. There was a sizable concentration of packing crates near the main southern entrance, through which he had entered. Each marked with the word '_Pride_', they had not been organized on the framework shelves yet, merely stacked close together as if waiting to be sorted. Every one had an outward-facing panel removed; their collective emptiness was plainly evident, so Neji set that fact aside for the moment. No signs of chipping on any of the crate edges, or any splinters or sawdust on the ground… Several sets of tools, neatly arranged in locked storage racks… One smudged windowpane high on the east wall, but otherwise undisturbed; the screws in the window frame had begun to rust into position.

Fresh oil on the fore joints of the forklift ahead. Neji's pale eyes narrowed. The only other crates in the warehouse were discarded in a corner at the north end, and the layer of undisturbed dust on the surrounding floor suggested they had not been disturbed in some time. When he reached the far end of the building Neji climbed the stairs and traced his way back along the second-story catwalk. This bird's-eye view of the _Pride_'s containers confirmed his suspicions. No scuff marks on the floor; no off-balanced or toppled crates; not even any bent nails in the exposed faces.

No panic. No urgency. _Whoever emptied these crates of their contents did so at their leisure._ He caught himself. _…No. Whoever opened these crates knew the state in which he'd find them._ There remained the possibility that the ship's cargo went astray before the crates' delivery to this warehouse, but whether they were already empty or simply robbed where they now rested they had been opened methodically, not with the alarmed haste of someone making an unpleasant discovery. This inconsistency and his own footsteps together led Neji straight to the office set high into the southwest corner at the end of the catwalk.

He slipped silently through the cracked door. The room before him appeared little more than a glorified storage closet; the already narrow space was congested with dusty filing cabinets and neat stacks of papers. This tidiness did not extend to the rear of the room, however, where the mousy man behind his desk fought with a roiling sea of documents.

The sound of an aggravated pen and the rasp of paper masked Neji's approach. He stood silently before the desk until the other man happened to glance up- -and nearly jerk backward off his seat in surprise. _Over-strong reaction_, noted Neji. _Consistent with his apparent personality._

"Ah! M-M-Master Shinobi, y-you startled me," sputtered the man, scrambling to his feet and attempting to bow graciously simultaneously. "My… my name is-"

"Harimatsu Migorigi, Harbormaster. I recall," supplied the ninja dryly. "I am Neji Hyuuga."

Another bow, on secure footing this time. "Ple… pleasure to m-meet-"

"May I review the manifest of stolen goods from the _Waves' Pride_?"

Migorigi hitched at the unexpected question but recovered almost immediately. "Oh, uh, cer… certainly." He prodded through the morass of paper for the appropriate documents and handed them to the shinobi.

Without another word Neji rescued a stool from beneath its load and took a seat in the middle of the room facing the door, where he gave the list an absent scan. The document was unimportant, of course, but it gave him excuse to observe the harbormaster discreetly. He activated his Byakugan.

Behind him, Migorigi remained standing, aloof and unsure. Eventually, when the man decided there would be no further questions immediately, he took his own chair again. He scrawled a few notes here and there, his attention still on his guest, but when the shinobi did not move for several long minutes he gradually returned himself fully into his work.

This was the state Neji had been waiting to see. He noted some tautness remaining in Migorigi's form, but most drained away and what little remained appeared to have nothing to do with his presence; the harbormaster's eyes never left his desk, rapt on the numbers and figures there. Neji watched several alternating moments of frustration and minor satisfaction pass over Migorigi's face as he diligently and systematically examined and shuffled and penned. This was a lover of ledgers and budgets, Neji decided, a man most comfortable in his bookkeeping, who could easily lose himself in the pleasure of solving paperwork puzzles.

Once he had a good read of the man's natural posture and mannerisms, Neji spoke again without turning. "Harbormaster." Shoulders jerked violently -Neji was certain Migorigi had forgotten his presence. "I would like to discuss certain details of your security procedures."

The harbormaster adjusted his glasses with restless fingers. "A-ah, yes…?"

_Nervous under questioning. Usually a sign of something to hide, but also common to natural timidity. Impossible to determine as of yet._ Still ostensibly gazing at the manifest, Neji led with a disarming question. "When the _Pride_ arrived at the outer-most buoy in the bay, you departed in a second craft, the _Crestchaser_. What was the purpose for this?"

"Ah, well you see, the 'chaser ship', as we call it, passes by the incoming freighter, performing an initial check of crew and cargo safety, before scouting around the outlying buoys and islets for any pirates who might attempt to strike during the offloading. Assuming none are found, the vessel 'chases' the freighter into port, drops off the Harbormaster –er, that being me– and protectively hems the freighter in against the open sea until offloading is complete."

This was consistent with the facts Neji had garnered in the harbor, and it served to put the man at ease. Tension evaporated from Migorigi as he explained a practice he had doubtlessly invented himself. "That sounds like a potentially hazardous duty," observed Neji casually.

Migorigi grimaced. There was fear of danger, certainly, but not enough to suggest he'd seen any. "…The chaser ship carries half of the mercenary troop we usually employ, the other half having accompanied the freighter on its voyage."

Neji turned his head ever so slightly, as if interested but unable to pull his attention away from the manifest. "Could I speak to this mercenary company? They do not seem terribly effective, given your loss rate."

There. Wide eyes and an alarmed response: "You- -you can't. They've already returned to their home camp until the next voyage." He added hurriedly, "-A-and they don't give out where that is, we have to use a medium to contact them." Then he did something curious; with these last words Migorigi shuddered, in a manner that suggested… relief?

Neji had accepted this statement as a blatant lie, but if the harbormaster was frightened by his own mercenaries (not implausible considering the nature of most hired blades) it provided an alternate motivation for the lie.

Of course, the most intimidating mercenaries were also the ex-shinobi ones. "I see." _More evidence of our kidnappers, perhaps?_ pondered Neji before returning to the matter at hand. "Concerning the offloading itself, the port crew began ferrying the cargo to the warehouse -this one-" he gestured at the floor beneath them "-immediately, keeping constant watch the whole distance. Is this correct?"

"Yes."

"I understand a random sample of crates was opened at the dock to confirm their contents."

"…Y-yes, I… I oversaw that part my- myself."

"And you of course remained at the _Waves' Pride_ overseeing until she had been emptied of her load," continued Neji dismissively. Keeping his voice neutral, he asked, "Who guarded the cargo inside the warehouse until you arrived?"

"A… a handful of volunteers from the day crew." There was hesitation in Migorigi's voice, but this was by now clearly characteristic of the man. Neji did note the perspiration gathering on his forehead, however…

Affecting surprise, Neji asked, "Not the freighter-bound mercenaries?"

A firm shake of the head. An honest admission, then: "N-no, they spread out into the surrounding neighborhood, watching for land-based thieves."

Having eliminated the opportunity for a rhetorical backdoor, Neji finally did turn, disabling Byakugan and fixing the man with a cool stare. "Curious. So why does one of your workers recall hired blades in the warehouse?" _I've seen how you act when lying. How will you react when caught at it?_

Migorigi's face flushed red. "-Er… ah, d-did-" At that point there was a dull crashing noise outside. It was barely noticeable, but the harbormaster immediately glanced out his window, eager to seize any moment of distraction. Neji did not have the vantage to see what had caused the sound, but the wave of recognition and relief rippling through the harbormaster told him his trap was beaten.

"-that is, w-was it Dobu or Mobu that told you th-that…?" asked Migorigi hopefully. When Neji did not respond, he bit his lip and decided to press on. "N-neither of them knows about the volunteer draft, you see, specifically to… well, to keep them from volunteering. -Good men, both of them, hard workers, but well, they… they aren't exactly…"

Neji had to admit he did fully understand this particular point. He tried again: "Then I shall need the names of the day crew volunteers for the _Pride_'s latest shipment."

No good. Dodging the near miss had emboldened him; he recovered much faster this time. "Uh, y-yes, w-well, I'm… I'm afraid that information will be on the weekly roster, which…" He gestured at the general state of his office. "…Well, it- -it could take quite some time to, to locate." Neji's eyes and lips narrowed. Just as expected.

This harbormaster was proving to be a curious case to read. Neji had conclusively determined he was hiding something, but he could not yet discern whether it was anything more than simple incompetence. There were too many inconsistencies in play; Migorigi was dodging questions, but not trying to change the subject; from the budgets and inventories on the desk Neji could tell his bookkeeping was flawless, but from the sizable stack of personnel complaints to his left it seemed the harbormaster fared poorly managing human resources; the man was lying, but only, so far, when the subject was other people.

_Time for a more direct method._ Neji pulled himself suddenly to his feet and took a swift step forward. "Can you guarantee with absolute certainty that the cargo crates were not misdirected or exchanged en route from the dock to this warehouse?"

Startled, Migorigi began to stutter out a reply. "W-what? Yes, of course-"

The shinobi drew closer yet, spreading his arms and shoulders a practiced distance and straightening a little more with each step to capitalize on his looming height. "Were there any injuries reported on the evening of the _Pride_'s arrival? Anyone incapacitated in any way? Even among personnel not on duty?" Keep pressing, push him off balance…

"No. No, I don't believe-"

…and pounce. Neji crossed the short remaining distance in one sweep and planted his hands on the desk with not quite a _slam_. "Then let me be perfectly clear with you, Harbormaster. I have already spoken to the captain of the _Waves' Pride_, and he assured me with utmost certainty his cargo was intact and whole for as long as it was in his possession. His first officer, his pilot, and three other sailors corroborate his claim. You and your dock workers have likewise asserted that the shipment cannot possibly have been taken anywhere between the docks and that floor out beneath us. And yet, somehow, the contents of each of those crates vanished under the eyes of several watchful men in the time it took you to walk directly here." Neji leaned in very close to the man shrinking away from him and let his pale, unblinking gaze bore into him. "The scene you have described is impossible. Someone is being duplicitous; whether it is your crews, your mercenaries, or you, we will discover the guilty party. No matter how deeply the truth is hidden, these eyes of mine **will** find it." For one final touch, he punctuated the word 'will' by activating his Byakugan.

But Migorigi did not flinch or startle. His face froze not in fear but silent awe for a gasp of heartbeats. His nervous form stilled, he raised his chin, and said in a voice of utmost sincerity, "I hope you do."

* * *

The stocky fellow in the silk vest and fashionable cap finally came trudging back out of the office. They could see a pair of signatures on the piece of paper he brought with him, but his lip was twisted in a grimace, as if he'd swallowed something that neither tasted good nor settled well.

The receptionist, an extremely attractive young lady in flowery perfume and an insufferably bored expression, gestured lazily to the two waiting shinobi.

_Finally…_ thought Neji irritably as he got to his feet. As he and his partner passed, the receptionist perked up ever so slightly when she noticed their headbands, but a moment later went back to looking as if her soul was draining out through her shoes.

The office into which they were shown, like the waiting room before it, was spacious and lavishly decorated. Green was very prominently the primary color; the place was stuffy with the crisp of new bills and success. Neji noted two things immediately: one, the sheer number of paintings of ships on the walls and model ships on every piece of furniture. Two, unlike every single other building he'd seen in this town, there wasn't even a sketch of a bridge to be seen.

At first Neji mistook the man behind the expensive desk -mahogany, it smelled like- for a head on a t-bone sticking out of a patch of grass. Very short but not a midget, he spread his emerald sleeves wide with a winsome smile. "Greetings! Please, come and have a seat." He gestured to the opulent armchairs lining the other end of his desk. "I am Gapol, owner of this company and foremost businessman of the Land of Waves." He paused expectantly, and Neji had the distinct impression he was waiting for them to bow. Pointedly ignoring this rather presumptuous cue, Neji took his seat and smiled, chin held high. His partner did the same beside him.

The man behind the merchant, a tall thug in armor -clearly a hired bodyguard- shifted on his feet and brought his sword more into view, trying to look dangerous. Before Neji could decide whether to laugh out loud Gapol continued as if nothing were amiss. "It's an honor to entertain some of our famous friends from the Leaf Village. Would you care for something to drink, Mister…?"

"Hyuuga, Neji Hyuuga, and no thanks."

"How about for the lovely lady then?" asked Gapol, flashing his partner with his charming smile.

Putting some edge into his voice, Neji spoke for her. "The Lady Hinata Uzumaki doesn't need anything either."

Gapol's eyebrows rose slightly. "Uzumaki, you say. My, my, such a famous guest indeed. I understand your husband has graced our town with his considerable presence as well. Will he be joining us? I would have liked to meet him." He kept his attention and his smile on the kunoichi as he spoke, letting his eyes wander up and down her form.

"I'm afraid the Hokage had other errands to attend to," answered Neji, with a trace of hesitation. _Is he- -is he really _ogling_ her?_

"Too bad," said the merchant with the barest glance his way, before turning immediately back to Hinata. "I must say, that dress complements your eyes and hair well, but I've recently imported a piece or two in which you'd look positively stunning." Hinata, for her part, merely quirked an eyebrow at him and remained silent. Gapol's charming expression faded somewhat. "She doesn't speak much, does she?" he asked, finally addressing the other shinobi.

Neji struggled to overcome his sheer dumbfounded astonishment at the man's terrible judgment. "No. She doesn't," he said finally, once he was certain he wouldn't crack up. Forcing himself back under control, he added, "Fortunately, my voice works well enough for both of us."

Wow. Neji could practically smell the testosterone coming from that bodyguard, who was trying to assert his presence again with the dreaded hand-on-hilt move. _You're one of _those_ guys, aren't you big fella? It's so fun to mess with your type…_ thought Neji, smirking smugly to his face.

The poor idiot bristled, but once again Gapol spoke as if he didn't notice. "Very well then. Let's get down to business. What can I do for you folks?"

Neji tore himself back to the task at hand. "Yeah, about that…" He caught himself. _Remember, eloquent and elegant, eloquent and elegant…_ "I suppose business is poor, with these mysterious pirates at large."

The merchant snorted derisively. "Where did you hear that? Is that the story Inari is spinning nowadays? Always an excuse -easier to believe in invisible pirates, the sailor's curse, and sea-bound gremlins than a dishonest ship captain or a profiteering crew chief, as naïve as he is."

"You believe someone on Inari's payroll is stealing from him?"

Gapol feigned surprise. "I didn't say that." He turned to his companion and asked innocently, "Did I say that?" The man's toothy grin painted satisfaction on the merchant's face. "Personally, I'd blame that bumbling fool Migorigi he brought on to replace me. Can't keep track of the end of his own nose, and Inari expects him to manage his shipments? Feh." He flicked irritably at a speck of dust on his shoulder.

Privately, Neji had to admit he probably had a point; from what folks around town had said, this Hari-whatever character did seem pretty flaky… Neji cleared his throat and pressed on. "So you've never had any problems with pirates."

"_Every_ merchant has encounters with pirates on occasion," replied Gapol with a shrug.

Neji gestured at the general extravagance surrounding them. "But you're right, you don't seem much the worse for it."

The merchant waved dismissively, his tone conciliatory and his face amicable. "Because every _intelligent_ merchant knows to take precautions against just such setbacks. Less-traveled routes, diversionary craft, last-minute schedule changes… These are all necessary policies that would never even occur to my lesser competitor, if he can even be called that."

_Read: dangerous waters, decoy ships and arbitrary launch orders. I bet this guy's workers don't like him much._ His partner sniffed curtly, as if reading his mind. Neji leaned forward, injecting a suggestive quality in his voice. "Looks like your independence has been enlightening, then, as clearly you devised these tactics after leaving Inari's employ." He spread his hands evenly. "Or maybe you did share them and they met with less than enthusiastic acceptance. Either way, if Inari never used these methods I find it strange he did so well before and immediately after your departure."

Gapol's eyes suddenly narrowed to slits and he nodded slowly. "I see the sale at the end of _this_ barter. Trying to pin his troubles on me, are you?"

Now it was Neji's turn to feign surprise. "I didn't say that." He turned to his partner. "Did I say that?" She smiled. The bodyguard shifted some more. Neji turned his cool smirk on the businessman. "But while we're entertaining the notion, Master Merchant, why is it that Inari's disappointed clientele can always seem to find replacements for his lost goods in your hands?"

"I've made certain to maintain a surplus of almost all the materials and products flowing into our town regardless of source," replied Gapol coldly. His former show of hospitality vanished completely, he eyed the shinobi with guarded suspicion. "It can get expensive, but that's not illegal, that's just business; hardship for a competitor is opportunity aplenty." He rose to his feet (gaining only a few inches in height) and planted his hands on his desk. "So you can tell your 'Shipbuilder' that if his firm is sinking, he'd better check out his own hull before he starts poking his nose around mine!" He collapsed back into his overstuffed chair with dramatic finality. "And with that, I don't believe we have any further business. This meeting is over." He spun his chair away, drew out a handkerchief and dabbed at his forehead. Neji could smell the sweat on his brow spoiling his rich cologne.

If that particular combination of odors was making him nauseous, this man's presumptuous attitude was certainly making Neji sick. "What if I disagree with that assessment?" He quirked an eyebrow. "Is your peon there going to show us the door?"

The bodyguard jerked as though struck by lightning. His sword was halfway to his hand before Gapol whirled and seized his arm. "Put that away! Are you mad?" he demanded. The armored thug hesitated for a long moment before reluctantly re-sheathing his weapon. Neji smiled at the faint sound of grinding teeth. _Not going to take the bait after all? Too bad._

Gapol fixed his guests with a calculated stare. "I would never presume to tell you what to do, Master Shinobi," he pursed his lips into a thin smile, "but it certainly wouldn't lessen Inari's problems if I had to send to the mayor's office to have him censured for corporate harassment, correct?"

_Yeah yeah, I get the message Mister Big Shot._ Neji settled for one more taunting smile at the thug before departing, his partner trotting after him. The miserably bored receptionist batted a curious eye their way before returning to her nap.

In the opulent entryway beyond, the shinobi paused on the grand staircase behind a pillar at a gap in the surveillance cameras' coverage. After confirming with each of his senses that they were not being observed, Neji murmured, "Well, partner, what do you think?"

'Hinata' took several snuffling breaths before her lip curled up over her fangs and she issued a low growl.

'Neji' nodded and took a few deep whiffs of his own. "Yeah, I smell it too. Something stinks here, besides the slimeball." He jerked his head upward. "Let's check it out."

Scrambling up the blindside of the pillar, the two shinobi vanished into the paneling in the ceiling, a glimpse of a shaggy tail chasing a puff of smoke.

* * *

Konohamaru stomped down the busy street, seething his indignation like an impatient tea kettle. He felt a twinge of guilt each time a startled villager had to jump out of his way, but another part of him needed the satisfaction that came with it right now.

"_If the high and mighty Hokage can't be bothered to interrogate me with anyone better than a snot-nosed second-rater, then I don't see why I should bother answering any of his questions!"_

Peacekeeper Chief Seto Koribu's words still buzzed in his ear like an angry hornet. _But that's no reason you couldn't at least listen to them!_ thought Konohamaru bitterly. First of all, 'interrogation' was hardly the right word for asking about simple law-keeping policies and criminal histories, but that tight-lipped data-miser had acted like he was trying to break into the national treasury! Second of all, who the heck did this _civilian_ think he was, treating the Hokage's messenger like that? If the head of the Leaf Village sends even a _genin_ to speak to you, you show him the respect he deserves!

Konohamaru blew out a long breath. Of course, he could only guess how the cranky old fart would take the knowledge that the 'high and mighty Hokage' hadn't explicitly assigned _anyone_ to the Peacekeeper HQ… The trip had been on his own initiative.

He slowed his pace to an aimless amble, studying the long rut in the road at his feet dejectedly. He'd never been good at taking insults well -he'd been nothing but praised and admired almost his whole childhood, for starters- but with the Boss as his sensei he'd had plenty of time and experience learning (mostly by example) how to let hard words bounce off. It should have been easy this time too. Why should he care what some swollen-headed, overblown civilian he'd never met before had to say?

…Because it was a rather painful reminder of his very junior status here. He kicked at the rutted dirt. It was one thing to resolve to 'do what he can', but quite another to figure out just what that might be. Honestly, what did he have to offer the Leaf Twelve? They were _legends_- -compared to them he _was_ a 'snot-nosed second-rater'.

A burst of raucous laughter broke into his thoughts, and Konohamaru scowled up at the café he was passing.

"…so then _right_ when he's about to get up, the horse sits on him too!" As another peal of mirth went up the junior jonin's scowl became a puzzled one; he knew that voice. Once through the door he instantly spotted the clump of customers clutching their guts and banging on countertops. A moment later he caught sight of the self-satisfied storyteller buried in their midst and stopped short.

"Choji?"

The rotund ninja grinned and waved him on. "Konohamaru! Come on in, the sushi is magnificent!" He brandished the chopsticks in his other hand, and Konohamaru saw there were at least four sizable platters arrayed around the Akamichi, not counting those his companions were eating from. "I recommend the eel, but the next batch of dumplings is almost ready, right Endo?" A beaming chef gave him a thumbs-up through the kitchen window. A couple of the townsfolk in more control of themselves greeted the younger ninja and produced a stool for him, even as their sides shook and they wiped their eyes.

"Hey, come on Choji, finish the story, ne?" begged one of them eagerly.

"Ha! Sure thing. Hm… so where was I…"

"The horse! The horse!" supplied another patron, a woman laughing so hard she could only sputter the words in bursts between staggering gasps.

Choji snapped his fingers. "Right, I remember now! So anyway, this poor guy…" And he went on to describe the continued and increasingly bizarre misadventures of the unluckiest burglar he and Team 10 had ever encountered, keeping his audience in perpetual stitches. Throughout, Konohamaru sat glaring at the senior ninja and trying, unsuccessfully, to subtly catch his eye; whenever the bigger man paused in his story his attention went immediately to the replenishing platters of seafood at his elbow, and Konohamaru's voice could never carry over the other patrons'.

Finally Choji seemed to reach the end of his story, crossing his arms firmly and watching the crowd's hysterics in satisfaction. Tired of being patient, Konohamaru gave the other ninja's sleeve a hard tug. "Choji, can I have a word with you?"

"Hm? Sure." As he stood he waved to his company. "Be right back fellows!" None of them were yet able to respond.

The two of them proceeded to the empty far corner of the room, where the younger man rounded on the older. "What in the name of Hokage Mountain are you thinking?" he whispered viciously. "We're supposed to be gathering information about pirates and kidnappers right now!"

Unfazed, Choji fixed him with a curious look and asked calmly, "What does it look like I'm doing?"

"It looks like you're stuffing your face and slacking off, that's what it looks like!"

The senior ninja waggled a finger. "Ah, but why can't they be the same thing?" he asked with a bemused smile. Completely thrown, Konohamaru gaped at him in baffled silence. After breathing a long sigh, Choji fixed his compatriot with a serious look for the first time. "Pubs, taverns and cafés are important sources of intelligence, Konohamaru. People come to places like this to relax and gossip. Sit down and be a friend over a few hot rolls and some tea and you become a confidant." He gestured back at the crowd of patrons who had recovered enough to chat animatedly amongst themselves. "You hear things across a bar's countertop you don't get across an interrogator's desk, stories and rumors even good folks neglect to share with the authorities." As Konohamaru tried to absorb this new idea, Choji leaned forward, a conspiratorial gleam in his eye. "Stories like a timid little harbormaster working alone several hours overtime even when the day's work is done, or a certain Shipbuilder's wife going for late night strolls in odd parts of town." His gaze flicked over the younger man's shoulder and he arched an eyebrow. "Speaking of which…"

Turning, Konohamaru followed Choji's eyes through the window, where a familiar figure was passing on the far side of the street. "Kichita?" he puzzled. "What about her? Didn't she tell us this morning she had errands in the market?"

Choji nodded affably. "She did." Then he smirked. "So why doesn't she have any purchases in her basket? And why," he added with a pointed gesture, "is she taking side roads and alleyways toward the warehouse district?"

Stiffening, Konohamaru spun around and gave the woman a second look. Choji was right; there was a blanket in the basket in the crook of her elbow, but it swung much too lightly to contain anything else; as he watched, she paused at a gap between buildings, glanced about nervously, and turned in -directly away from the main market. He thought back to dinner last night, to that significant glance he'd spied, and made up his mind. "I'm going to follow her. Choji, are you-"

But when he turned back, Choji was already reentering his crowd of admirers at the bar. The closest of them clapped him on the shoulder and asked for another story. Shaking his head in disgust, Konohamaru set out alone.

* * *

Kichita's path eventually looped out toward the northeastern edge of town above the warehouse district, where there were practically no other people and buildings thinned out. Since the rooftops began to tend toward low and flat, Konohamaru had crossed over to the near tree line and traced the woman's progress from the brush.

_Where is she going…?_ he puzzled to himself. Kichita was quickly running out of possible destinations from what he could see; if she was going to the Harbormaster's office she should have turned southward blocks ago…

He dropped down from the ramp-like fallen log atop which he'd perched and landed with a splash and a grimace. He hadn't noticed the puddle below. Already he could feel the water soak through his sandals, practically reaching up for his pant legs-

"_**Konohamaru! Look out!"**_

Suddenly someone shoved him hard from behind. As he fell forward he heard another splash and the rippling sound of a lot of moving water. He caught his momentum on his hand and spun himself around, landing in a crouch.

Where he'd been just a moment before he saw Choji Akamichi suspended off the ground, completely encased in a perfect sphere of water.

* * *

(End)

* * *

Oh yeah. Next chapter, it's _on_.

Now, before I let you go, I feel like I need to say that this is my senior year. Obviously, this is a very important time for me at school, so even though I will not stop working on this story, I have to put it frankly that I don't know how much time I'm going to have to spare for it over the immediate future. I ask any of you left to continue being as patient with me as you have been.

Please leave reviews -the more feedback I get really does help motivate me to get more done faster.

Until next time,  
~ArcTheJedi


	5. Land of Waves: Instigation

Hoo boy, I don't even want to consider how many months it's been. I didn't _mean _to announce my big return and then drop off the face of the planet, honest. I could cite a great number of excuses, but the big one is that I stumbled into a pretty big epiphany, and my whole future turned about 90 degrees from the direction I thought it was going before. I am not depressed, and I never was, but a shock like that one still left me pretty emotionally dizzy for a while, and I'm afraid this story was the least of my concerns for a long while.

I'm still not exactly sure where the future's leading me, but while I was away I took a class in creative fiction, from which I feel I learned a great deal about both myself and the craft. Most of this chapter was already written before my abrupt disappearance, but pretty soon we'll see if my lessons show.

In any case, I'm sure I've lost the attention of most of my old reader base, but I've kept anyone left waiting long enough. I did want to offer special thanks to DT-THUNDER, TCNinja96, and ABigAssMoose for keeping after me about progress on this chapter. I don't know if any of them are still around to read it, but it really does help to have readers expressing interest over my shoulder like that.

**Disclaimer: Huh. You know, it's been so long since I've done one of these that it actually feels a bit nostalgic... which is probably not a good sign. Oh well. The _Naruto_ franchise and its characters are not mine. I have created a few original characters, but I've signed no pieces of paper about them, legal-looking or otherwise.**

* * *

Neji slipped silently through the warehouse door. The docks were almost empty. The Harbormaster had departed minutes before. The lock had been no trouble. Twilight was approaching and the lights were out, draping the warehouse in deep shadows.

Perfect for shinobi work.

Initial inspection of the ground floor yielded immediate results; the forklift had advanced 40 feet southward, oriented approximately 90 degrees from its previous location. One of the _Pride_'s containers had been placed on a nearby shelving unit. Everything else seemed undisturbed.

Curious. Why would the harbormaster move exactly one empty crate before departing? Keeping his Byakugan wary of his surroundings, Neji examined the crate carefully. Nothing of note on the inside, but the exterior bore chipped grooves on the base, consistent with the pattern of the forklift prongs. Neji brushed the splintered wood carefully, tested the weight of the container. Too light. If this crate had been empty when it was moved it should not have been heavy enough to damage the wood… unless… yes, the chipping was most extensive near the front edge, and the grooves were angled too sharply, meaning the crate had not properly seated. It was rushed.

That made even less sense. If Migorigi was in a hurry why even start such a dubious-looking job? To make himself look busy elsewhere? Neji put off the immediate conclusion to search the harbormaster's office to examine the forklift. The heat on the hood confirmed it was in use not long ago. The key left in the ignition… now another possible objective arose, following Migorigi to investigate what engagement had caused him to leave in such haste.

When he crouched to examine the treads, Neji's Byakugan noticed something under the cab, where it should have been out of sight. He retrieved what he immediately recognized as a page from the _Waves' Pride_ manifest he had seen mere hours ago. Though the rest of the document was missing, on a hunch Neji checked the serial number printed on the side of the shelved crate and as he suspected found its match on the page: a large order of fine fabrics intended for one _Kawesoto's New Wave_.

Choosing to ignore the terrible pun, Neji paused to consider his options: search through the harbormaster's paperwork as he had intended; track down Migorigi again and follow him; remain and investigate the present anomaly.

…The first would remain at hand and available, the second would take too much time and effort, and the present riddle was far too intriguing. What was he looking for, searching empty boxes with a list of missing goods? Migorigi had seemed much too agitated when he departed, even for his usual temperament. Had misplacing the page set him off?

_Under the forklift…_ Neji strode north and found an irregularity right where he expected one: directly beneath the forklift's previous resting place a large square section of the floor sat unevenly, one corner protruding about an inch above the surrounding ground. With his Byakugan, Neji saw what was lodged beneath the tile even before he pulled it free. No longer pinched by the trap door, a vivid purple silk pooled at the bottom of a tall ladder. Neji crouched low to the ground, staring _through_ the surrounding cement to get a view of this new chamber. It was constructed several feet below the warehouse, explaining why he had not noticed it with his initial investigations. It had a small footprint, perhaps an eighth the size of the ground floor. From what he could see, there were no traps or further protections, and the room was empty.

Of people, that is. Taking up nearly half the space, however… Neji's eyes narrowed and he carefully descended the ladder.

* * *

For half a moment, Konohamaru was tongue-tied. "Choji! Where did-! What is-!"

From inside the globe of water, Choji quirked an eyebrow with an easy smirk. "C'mon Konohamaru, you've seen the Water Prison Jutsu before," he chided. "Though I have to say I'm impressed he managed to spring it from so far away."

The younger ninja followed his pointed look, where 30 yards out another form was rising out of the brush. Even without the telling mark on his headband he was clearly a Rain shinobi, sporting a breather mask and dark-colored weather gear.

Biting back a curse, Konohamaru rose into a fighting posture. _Stupid! Never get so focused on your target you forget your surroundings! That's a _genin_ mistake, idiot!_ He scanned the terrain hurriedly, familiarizing himself more completely.

"Hey. Konohamaru. Don't you have someplace better to be right now?" Choji's voice cut across his concentration, hushed though it was.

"What?" The junior jonin turned his head a fraction, never taking his eyes off the enemy. "I can't leave you like this!" The Rain ninja was advancing steadily, almost sauntering, one arm outstretched. His eyes were hidden behind a strip of fabric, but even from distance he wore malevolent intent like a mantle.

"I appreciate the concern, really, but I'm not down and out yet." The joke in the Akamichi's tone was replaced with an edge. "And I think Naruto will want to know what we're up against as soon as possible, don't you?"

Konohamaru hesitated. _Choji's right. By the undamaged headband, he's not a rogue shinobi, which means he's here with a team. The Boss needs to know before the rest of them strike!_ He spared a half-glance at his teammate. "You're going to be all right?"

The hefty ninja was still smirking, and looking cramped in the (relatively) tiny sphere, but the hardened look in his eye as he watched their assailant, now drawing within 10 yards, convinced him. Konohamaru hurled a spray of smoke pellets at their adversary, and disappeared with the distraction.

* * *

Unperturbed by the smokescreen, the Rain ninja waited patiently for it to clear, his extended grip firm and steady, before addressing his captive. "So," he said without preamble, "how did you spot my trap?"

"Other than the missing reflection on the surface of the water?" countered Choji. He gestured as well as he could at the spot underneath him. "It's a natural hollow in the ground, but it's at the crest of a hill, and the log above it is drier than burnt toast. Now how would so much water get there…?"

The other shinobi chuckled, a tinny hiss through his mask. "Your reputation as one of the Leaf Twelve precedes you, as does your arrogance." He gestured with his other hand. "Or was it simple cowardice that left you alone at my mercy?"

"Arrogance? Reminds me of a little story involving pots and kettles," he said cheerfully. "Nice of you not to chase after him, by the way."

Choji imagined the sadistic grin behind that mask as his foe replied, "Why chase a minnow when I've got a whale in my net?"

His own eyes narrowed, ever so slightly. "I think I'm going to assume you meant that as a compliment."

That metallic chuckle again. "And if it wasn't?"

Choji paused to consider for a moment. He quirked his lip, shrugged-

-and burst into action, already giant and growing fist easily bursting his cage and reaching for the enemy, who jerked and flinched back before it.

* * *

Konohamaru had reached the third rooftop when he heard the first several impacts behind him. He grimaced and tried not to think about it, trying to calculate the quickest route back to the Shipbuilder's house. The streets of the warehouse district below were vacant this late in the day, so motion in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He dropped flat into the long shadows and peered over the edge of the roof.

Across the street, ground level, there was a figure tossing about furtive glances as if afraid of being followed. There was only time for a glance, but Konohamaru recognized the man before he vanished into an alley.

_Is that… Hari, the harbormaster?_ Stealing along in this secluded part of town… Konohamaru knew he had to get word of the enemy to the Boss, but his mind kept flashing back to that significant glance at dinner and the subsequent rumors about Hari and Kichita that he'd heard from- -urk, from Choji…

'_Always go with your gut, Konohamaru. It's never lead _me_ wrong, believe it!'_

Biting his lip, the young ninja leapt across the street and glided across the next roof, crouched low over the alleyway. At the far side he spotted Hari again, hurrying toward a secluded building, little more than a run-down storage shed, out behind the warehouses. There was no obvious entrance on the facing wall. The mousy man glanced about again when he reached the building, but when he rounded the corner out of sight Konohamaru sprinted the distance in a silent second. He opted against proceeding to the roof or the corner when he heard the door creak and crouched below the broken window that permitted the sound.

Voices soon followed. "_There_ you are." Konohamaru found he was unsurprised to hear Kichita in the room behind him. "You're late. What kept you?" Hari began to mumble something, but the woman cut him short. "Never mind, come help me with this."

"Kichita, I… we shouldn't."

"Oh, not again. Must you have second thoughts every time?"

"We're betraying Inari. Doesn't that bother you?"

"We've had this discussion before, Hari. Inari's a hero, but he's still just a man, like his father. The town makes him feel invincible, but he's going to get himself killed. Knowing that, I have absolutely no regrets about our arrangement."

"Well w-what about our guests? The Hokage and his Leaf Ninja-"

"-have their own crisis to deal with. By the time they have attention to spare it will be too late." The Harbormaster did not respond. "…I need you, Hari. I can't go on alone."

Finally there came a long sigh. "Yes, Kichita."

Konohamaru imagined what was about to happen in the room behind him and suppressed a snort of disgust. Backstabbers and traitors were the lowest of the low. He considered jumping through the window and confronting their secret rendezvous directly, but he forced himself to remember the mission at hand. Choji was depending on him, and now he had even more intel to report to the Boss.

He slipped silently away from the window and put on a burst of speed to make up the time.

* * *

Concealed in a dark space above the ceiling of Gapol's sumptuous entry hall, Kiba sat cross-legged, his back to a solid outer wall, his brow furrowed in concentration. He funneled chakra steadily into his senses, submerging his mind into an overpowering world of exacting sensory detail. He felt every mote of dust he had disturbed settling onto the tips of his hair. He became acutely aware of the last lingering aftertaste of that nasty survival ration paste between two of his molars. He heard the rhythmic _scritch-scritch_ of the spider's legs on the wall opposite, and if he opened his eyes he could have counted the hairs on its body even through the blackness.

Instead, before he could begin to be overwhelmed by the onslaught of information, Kiba focused his attention down through the hairline cracks between ceiling panels, invading the building with his inquiring presence. Like some insubstantial wisp or wraith, his consciousness glided through the air, flowing around, under, through the minute imperfections in the expensive doors into the antechamber of the rich merchant's office. Studiously suppressing the background ambiance, he scarcely noted the lilac perfume of the receptionist or the tang of freshly-applying nail polish before passing on to the office proper.

Though he couldn't see the room, he consulted his memory of it to take his bearings. He picked up the woody odor of the mahogany desk immediately, and from there he found the stench he was smelling for: Gapol's rich cologne. He carefully separated the smell from the rank of sweat and musk of the bodyguard, fixing it in his mind like a bloodhound.

Kiba followed the scent back into a narrow passageway, a concealed bolt-hole if the size of the seam through which air seeped was anything to judge. Now that was interesting. The stink of sweat grew more prominent further down the passageway. While unpleasant to Kiba's hyper-sensitive nose, it betrayed more of the mood of the man who had been urgent enough to use a secret passageway.

_What's got you so keyed up, huh?_ Kiba doggedly followed the trail out into the building proper somewhere, around a handful of turns and through several doorways. The detail of his senses waned significantly over distance (the reason for overcharging them so intensely at the start) but at the moment he could still make out the general shape of the hallways and chambers Gapol led him through. He detected several other distinct scents -employees, doubtlessly- turning sharply away from his current course, and whenever Gapol and his flunky had neared a large enough group the trail veered to avoid them altogether.

Akamaru, curled around Kiba's knees in their concealment, tracked his partner's progress mildly. He offered the occasional advice in the form of the barest whisper of a pant or growl, but the bulk of the big hound's concentration was on their surroundings, keeping watch for his partner.

A moment later the world of scents through which Kiba traveled abruptly changed. The distant sound of rushing wind and the hint of ocean spray informed him that the trail had just left the building. He grimaced. Between the serpentine distance he'd crossed and that tangy breeze he wouldn't be able to follow Gapol's progress much further. Good thing the cologne was so overbearing. He kept his attention on the ground and stuck to the odor as well as he could, like tracing a thin dotted line that quickly grew narrower and more widely spaced. He lost it twice on turns, but just as it was about to disappear entirely Kiba ran into a cold, dispassionate smell colored only by the faint beginnings of rust -a metal door.

Kiba smiled and double-checked his memory of the route's distance and orientation. He didn't have the juice to continue past the door, but his gut told him it was time for some legwork anyway. He released the jutsu and brought his consciousness back to their concealed space in the ceiling. He let his supercharged senses drain back toward normal, but caught them at a state heightened enough for optimal mobile alertness.

Akamaru greeted him with a tail wag and a quiet _huff_. Kiba patted his head and spoke with a toothy smirk, "Time to pay Gapol's shadow another visit." The two of them slipped down and out of the entrance hall, then up to the roof.

They skimmed silently over the even rooftop toward the northeast corner. Kiba thought ahead to their destination. He hadn't noticed any building over there on their first sweep of the grounds, but if it was that secluded it practically screamed dirty secrets. Kiba had dropped the hint that the Leaf ninja suspected Gapol very deliberately in their interview; now they had only to go see what the snobby merchant had made the most discreet beeline to check on immediately afterward. Stolen goods maybe? Or maybe Captain Testosterone the bodyguard had a few thug-buddies, and Gapol was about to order them to pay the Leaf crew a visit. Kiba cracked his knuckles. That would be fun.

Of course, if they were really lucky, he and Akamaru would find the ninja they were looking for, either the kidnappers in person or the suspected pirates that might know about them.

_Hold on_, he reminded himself. _You don't even know Gapol has any shinobi in the first place._

His step slowed, and he thought back to the interview with the merchant. He shook his head. _No, he rode that bodyguard hard when he almost came at us. He's too smart to think he can take us with thugs. He's scared of us, but not enough to think we can do anything to him. He's got to have something he thinks can counter us._

_Or he's innocent,_ his smarter, rational side countered. _Maybe he doesn't intend to fight you at all._

Kiba snorted. _Yeah right. I'll believe that when I see it. No way this guy is on the level._

_Okay,_ he conceded, _then assuming there are shinobi, is charging in on them really a good idea? Remember what they did at the Academy?_ Kiba's step hitched again. That was a good point. If these guys had as much firepower as he thought they might… _And it's unlikely you'd be able to sneak up on them either,_ his inner voice insisted. _Evasion and insertion experts, remember? Listen to your instincts here. It makes much more sense to go back and report to the Hokage._

Kiba was on the point of agreeing with himself when Akamaru made an inquiring sound. Jerked out of his thoughts, Kiba saw the hound giving him a questioning look over his shoulder, and realized that he'd stopped moving completely during his introspective. Feeling annoyed with himself, he shook his head to clear it. _Report what?_ he thought. _We haven't even found anything yet._ He took a stride forward.

A shuriken embedded itself in the roof hairs' breadth in front of his foot. He'd heard the swishing sound of its travel and was already dropping back and flat onto fingertips and toes tensed to hurl him any direction. Akamaru reacted similarly, nose and legs tensed, eyes and ears pricked, growling softly as he searched for their attacker.

There was nothing to see. The roof was flat, unimpeded, and the tallest of all the buildings in the vicinity. The only trees nearby were on a downward slope in the direction of their destination, still some ways off. A quick glance at the shuriken's embedding angle told Kiba it could not have come from those trees, but that made no sense; the only possible origin left was open space.

A chill ran down his spine. _See?_ he told himself. _You have no idea what you're getting into here. Time to leave while you still can! _Akamaru, who had instinctively drawn closer to his partner, suddenly perked up and glanced around actively, as if he'd heard the words. Kiba frowned as the realization struck him that the voice saying them hadn't quite sounded like his own. Impossibly close, but somehow _off_ at the same time. Heightened eyes and ears apparently useless, Kiba took a few tentative sniffs with his powerful nose, but smelled nothing. An ugly sinking feeling settled like sour ice into his guts, and it took him a moment to identify the cause. It wasn't that he smelled nothing out of the ordinary; it was that he smelled nothing _at all_, not the sea salt in the wind, not the musk of Akamaru's fur, not even the leather of his own jacket. His prized nose was completely blind. Akamaru whined softly to confirm both that he wasn't having any more luck, and that he was equally unnerved.

"Who are you? _Where_ are you?" growled Kiba out of instinctive alarm. "Get out of my head!"

He heard laughter from near enough to be arm's reach, but every beat of the sound seemed to come from a different angle. Akamaru spun helplessly trying to track the source. Kiba didn't give their foe the satisfaction, closing his eyes entirely. _If I did that,_ he thought-NO! Kiba reminded himself fiercely, NOT his thoughts! The laughter struck up again. _If I did that,_ the voice continued patiently, _you might spoil the surprise. The party isn't going to really start jumping for at least another half-hour…_

"So what you're saying is that I'm on the right track? Good to know…" ground out Kiba, straining his ears. They proved no more useful than his nose. The laughter hadn't ceased when the voice spoke, and unlike that sound the words seemed to issue from inside his own head.

_Yes and no,_ the voice thought-no, said, blast it. There was a touch of amusement to Kiba's own other-inner voice now, and it was really starting to grate on his nerves. _Let's just say you've got a surprise or two in store if you think you know what's really going on._

"Uh-huh," said Kiba, cautiously easing himself up into a crouch. He reviewed the quickest path to a kunai in his pouch, but made no move toward it. "And what's your part in all this?" He kept trying to gather the concentration for a genjutsu release, but every time he thought he heard himself thinking he got distracted.

The laughter died down. '_Your'?_ replied the familiar voice playfully. Without the laughter he thought it sounded further away, somehow, though he knew it wasn't his ears telling him so. _I am Nobody and No-one. Fortunately now it seems 'nothing' needs to keep you entertained. Until we meet again…_ The old laughter picked up, joined by a new set, and both seemed to fade away like an old echo or a fading memory.

Right then, for a fraction of a second before the ambient smells of a baking rooftop, hot leather and fur, and sea breeze returned to his nose in a flood, Kiba did pick up a peculiar scent. It was an odd sense, one he couldn't identify on the spot, so he made careful note of it in his memory to sink his teeth into later. He had the feeling that whoever their unseen friend was, he -he? it? they?- had departed, but he knew better than to let his guard down.

A moment later he was sure they were alone, however, when he spotted a pair of figures approaching out of the trail through the trees to the northeast -Gapol and his hired flunky. _Blast it,_ Kiba thought, and a rush of uncertainty and goosebumps later he repeated it aloud. "Blast it! That's what he meant. He stalled us until Gapol finished his business."

Akamaru tried to issue an indignant huff of agreement, but it came out more like an uncertain whine. The poor hound was still tense and unsettled, glancing around and snuffling nervously. With a grimace, Kiba reached down, plucked the shuriken from the roof, and gave it a good thorough sniff. His heightened senses seemed to be working perfectly now; he got the very clear sense that the shuriken was fresh from the artisan's bench, utterly void of any other scent -flesh or fabric or even cleaning oils- prior to his own hand.

Resisting the urge to shudder, Kiba pocketed the shuriken and straightened. He considered checking Gapol's secret-business-building anyway, but he had a hunch he wouldn't find anything useful there now. Besides… "Half an hour, huh?" Kiba stared out over the bay, where even in the waning light he could see what was beginning to roll in off the water. "C'mon Akamaru, let's get out of here." _I get the feeling the Knucklehead is going to want all the heads-up I can give him._

When he caught himself pausing to make sure that thought was really his own, Kiba bit back a curse and took off, Akamaru in eager pursuit.

* * *

Neji sealed the floor panel behind him with effortless precision. His internal sense of time insisted that his investigation had been succinct, but no trace of daylight remained in evidence through the warehouse windows. He did not give the matter much consideration, distracted as he was by his findings.

There had been absolutely no need to set foot in the Harbormaster's office. Nearly the entirety of the missing cargo of the _Waves' Pride_ was stashed beneath the warehouse floor, and judging by the dust-layered, empty crates labeled to other vessels, the hollow was not a new construction.

How the cargo had disappeared under watch was now obvious, and that fact led to other logical conclusions. Neji's mind raced to piece together a probable model of these pirates' operations from the facts at hand and his own past experience with outfits such as these. There were some details he could not yet reasonably verify, of course, such as the ultimate recipient of these stolen goods, but he even had a good idea where to look for the answers he didn't have.

Neji neatly folded the page of the manifest that had tipped him to the information treasure trove and tucked it neatly away in a pouch. Copied in his painstakingly exacting script on its backside were an address and a time and date, specifically later in the present evening. Clearly, to Neji's mind, a drop-off arrangement or a meeting to discuss one, the information had been hurriedly scrawled on the inside wall of a crate, hidden beneath several swaths of more rich silk and another two crates besides. The precaution was an admirable effort against the everyday villager, but meant little to a shinobi who could see through solid objects.

Thus armed with the bountiful results of his reconnaissance, Neji slipped out through the warehouse door… …and paused, when he abruptly understood why the daylight seemed to have faded prematurely.

Even the local streetlights were having difficulty penetrating the fog.

Neji's pale eyes narrowed. It was much too warm for fog. If it had gathered this quickly and this densely there should have been an accompanying chill. Even without that discrepancy, the tingling sensation in the air would have tipped him off. This was no natural occurrence.

A short flare of his Byakugan confirmed it; the mists were laced with so much chakra as to be nearly overwhelming. The swirling, shimmering patterns of energy were so bright and thick that his Byakugan offered no more visibility than the naked eye against the fog.

_So it seems our suspicion of shinobi involvement has been verified_, thought Neji dryly. He estimated there was still some time before the secret appointment he had discovered, and this new development significantly altered the situation. Neji did not delude himself with the misguided notion that the Leaf forces may yet have eluded notice; the prudent course of action, therefore, was to regroup and formulate a strategy.

Senses taut, Neji advanced at a careful pace into the mist. The town was eerily quiet. The streets seemed abandoned, which was not abnormal for this hour and district, but even the waves in the harbor sounded muted and remote, despite their proximity behind him. It was as if the fog was muffling the world in addition to obscuring it. Given its chakra content, it very well might have been.

Neji was on the point of transition from the warehouse district to the main street shopping strip, passing through an alleyway when a silhouette darted overhead, leaping across the low rooftops at the edge of his vision. Reflexively he leapt up after it, kicking off the far wall for a spinning momentum.

The other ninja had seen him coming and rolled into a crouch, shuriken at the ready, but he relaxed after Neji launched into view.

"Neji!" gasped Konohamaru. "Don't _do_ that! I've already been jumped once today."

Neji reigned in the chakra gathered in his palms but did not release it, and when he landed on the rooftop he settled into good footing for a quick turn. It looked like Konohamaru, donning the goggles he usually wore around his neck, but even so Neji asked quietly, "How many subbasements are there beneath Hokage Tower?"

The other man tilted his head. "Huh? Oh! Right. Uh, three."

Neji quirked his lip and slacked his stance. There were actually four subbasements, but the answer to the code phrase was intentionally incorrect to safeguard against imposters with good intelligence. "You mentioned that you have encountered the enemy already?"

"Yeah. A Rain ninja attacked Choji and me not too long ago." Konohamaru's voice took on the bitter shade of self-disappointment. "I screwed up. I was tailing Kichita and I wasn't paying attention. Choji took the Water Prison I sprung like an idiot and then ordered me to get out and warn everyone." His tone grew even more disgusted. "Right afterward I stumbled across Kichita again at a secluded rendezvous with the Harbormaster." He shook his head. "They don't deserve Inari's trust. After that I hightailed it for home base, but this stupid fog rolled in across the whole city in less than two minutes! Didn't slow me down much," he tapped his goggles, "but I've been on edge ever since."

And for good reason, mused Neji. Rain shinobi. One for the ambush, a second for the fog, another to account for the speed and density of the latter meant it was at least three jonin-level ninja, by his estimation. "You did not attempt to disrupt the Water Prison before departing?"

Frustration returned to Konohamaru's face. "The Rain activated it at range. He held one hand like the anchor, but I didn't see any connections between him and the jutsu."

Neji nodded. Skilled ones, at that. The fog gave their enemies an environmental advantage, and their numbers were as of yet unconfirmed. This new information only made it more advisable to regroup in safety and proceed with caution. The Leaf ninja should come to Choji's aid only once they were better informed and prepared to avoid any unnecessary losses. That was the prudent course of action.

But the Will of Fire dictated that no comrade was left in danger.

Neji knew Konohamaru's infrared goggles would allow him more speed through this chakra-mist than the Byakugan. It was a calculated risk, but Neji decided the faster shinobi should warn their allies. "Your suspicions of the Harbormaster are well-founded," he began, reaching for his pouch. "I found the missing contents of Inari's freighter in a secret subbasement of his warehouse, last accessed by Migorigi." He handed the folded manifest to the younger man. "This paper contains a time and location great pains were taken to conceal. I suspect our nervous little friend's role in all this will be revealed there. Take it to the Hokage and relay everything you and I have learned."

Konohamaru accepted the page and the task with a brisk nod. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"Where were you attacked?" Neji countered.

The younger man blinked, understood. Peering off into the distance, he adjusted his goggles and said, "Northeastern edge of town. That way." He shot Neji a smirk and added, "If you can, try to leave some action for me." Then he leapt into the fog and was gone.

Neji regarded the stifling mists and the tactical idiocy he was committing with dispassionate calculation. It was not the first time he had operated under conditions that hard-countered the Byakugan; relying too heavily on one ability or jutsu was an obvious weakness. He was shinobi, he was Leaf, and he was Hyuuga.

He set off to the northeast.

* * *

Konohamaru practically exploded through the front door. "Boss!" he yelled. "We got trouble!"

Naruto turned from Sakura and Kiba, who had both tensed at the sudden arrival. "So I've heard," he growled -and added "finally" under his breath. "What've you got?"

"It's Rain! One of them ambushed Choji and me, and it looks like he's not alone."

"What?" asked Hinata in alarm from the doorway into the kitchen. "Is Choji all right?"

The young man was slow to answer. "He seemed confident when he sent me away," he reported, "and Neji is on his way to help." But Naruto knew the look on his old pupil's face from many past screw-ups and knew there was more than he was saying.

"In this fog?" asked Sakura incredulously. "It's so thickly charged with chakra I'd be surprised if his Byakugan can see more than a few feet."

Konohamaru's eyes widened. "What? But-"

"It's Neji and Choji," Naruto reminded them all. "They'll be fine." He knew Hinata would still be worried behind him, and Sakura did not look reassured, but he turned to Kiba. "Rain, huh? What do you think?"

The other ninja shared a look with his canine partner. "Rain ninjas would make for good pirates," he said, gesturing at the fog outside, "and Gapol definitely had something he didn't want us to know about."

"I've never heard of anyone from the Rain Village able to do what Kiba describes though," Sakura mused, sounding worried.

Naruto waved impatiently. "But whoever it is was watching Gapol's back, right? That's good enough for me to peg him as our bad guy."

"Not our only one," said a grim Konohamaru, drawing eyes again. "Neji saw the Harbormaster going into a secret room where all the stolen goods are stashed, and the Rain jumped us while I was tailing Kichita to a private meeting sweet-talking Harimatsu in a secluded room." Naruto felt a flash of the same anger that was coloring his protégé's tone. "They're both playing Inari for a chump!"

There was a sound back by the kitchen or the hallway. When Naruto turned he saw Hinata leaning heavily on the doorframe, trying to avoid being noticed looking sick. Frustration and worry temporarily muscled in on his anger.

Sakura, who had also looked round, nodded toward Inari's room and hissed, "Keep your voice down. True or not, that's not something Inari needs to hear right now." The Shipbuilder had returned not too long before, dragging his feet with the sort of fatigue that has nothing to do with the body, and retired to his bed. He was probably still fast asleep, but his door wasn't far away.

Konohamaru took the hint and drew closer, reaching for something in his pouch. "Here. Neji said he thought this paper would get us our answers." Naruto took it and recognized it after a moment as a page from a ship's manifest. When he turned it over he saw information written in the Hyuuga's exacting handwriting.

Kiba peered at the address and growled something under his breath. "That's Gapol's office. I was just there."

Sakura glanced up at the clock. "And the time is less than fifteen minutes away."

"Good," declared Naruto. "Then we've got a party to crash and someone to shake the truth out of." The prospect of knuckle-administered payback for anyone backstabbing his old friend was almost more appealing than finally figuring out this whole mess. "All right, some of us will go back up Choji and Neji, and the rest will go with me to Gapol. Keep your eyes peeled, we're going to be walking out into trouble-"

As if summoned by that word, the sound of distant explosions drifted in through the open front door, even through the muffling mists. The shinobi all paused to look out into the murk.

"Konohamaru," said Sakura, "where did you say you and Choji were attacked?"

"The northeastern edge of town."

Akamaru made a throaty sound. "Something's not right," Kiba agreed, eyes narrowing. "That sounded like it came from completely the wrong direction, out to the west."

Sakura hissed in a breath. "I _thought_ blanketing the whole city was overkill. We're not all they're after tonight."

"I don't like that," said Naruto crisply. "I don't like that at all." He spun. "Hinata, can you check on Inari?"

She nodded and turned toward his room, activating her Byakugan. Her eyes widened immediately. "He's gone!" Her husband had crossed to the door and flung it open almost before she finished speaking. The master bedroom was tidy and undisturbed, exactly as it should be except for its vacancy. The single window stood partially open.

"Did the Rain grab him?" came Konohamaru's alarmed voice.

"No chance!" Kiba replied. "Akamaru and I would have smelled them a mile away." He hesitated. "…Unless it was our mystery shinobi."

But Naruto was sure he knew what had really happened. "No," he said. "He heard us. He's done exactly what I would have done. He's gone to Gapol."

Sakura looked like she wanted to kick herself almost as much as he did. "Of course he did. And it will never occur to him how much less indestructible he is than you. Even if Gapol doesn't wish him harm, Inari is way too likely to stand up to any Rain he comes across."

Hinata gasped. "We have to go after him!" But she took only one step before she suddenly broke into a burst of coughing. Naruto moved to support her, but she held up one hand to ward him off. When the fit subsided and she moved her other hand away from her mouth, her eyes widened and she tried to hide it, but her husband had seen it too; Naruto seized her arm and pulled it into the light-

-revealing the spatters of blood.

Someone sucked in a surprised breath. His pulse suddenly racing, the Hokage decided it was time to bury the long-dead remains of the benefit of the doubt. "Okay, that's the last straw. _We_ have to go after him, but _you_ are staying right here." He whirled, ignoring Hinata's downturned eyes and reddening face. "Sakura, find out what's wrong with her and keep your heads down. Can you manage on your own?"

The medic was already pinning her friend under a trained examiner's gaze. She spared Naruto a curt but confident nod before pulling a reluctant Hinata aside.

Naruto whirled on his two remaining subordinates. "Change of plans: I'll send some clones to find Neji and Choji; Kiba and Akamaru, catch up with Inari; Konohamaru, you're coming with me to Gapol's. Let's see if we can pull this whole thing out at the roots." A trio of assents promptly answered. "Keep civilians out of danger and stomp on any Rain you find, but be careful if you run into the weird unknown guys." He moved to the front door and jabbed a defiant finger into the murky fog. "Move!"

* * *

(end)

* * *

I admit there is a possibility the quality might dip a little bit from here out, but let me explain that. My problem has always been that I over-think everything; I get so caught up worrying about staying in character and pre-empting plot holes that I get myself locked up and don't write anything. I'm going to be trying to muscle my way through that particular block from here on out. If I'm successful, I might have a few more clunky sentences and inconsistencies like the ones I mentioned (OoC-ness most likely) but I should also be updating faster as well. I make no promises (I know better by now) but we'll see how this works.

By all means please review, but above all I'd appreciate it if someone -or better yet multiple someones- could keep pestering me about progress every now and then. That will probably do the most to help me get over my block, which in turn should get chapters out sooner.

It's good to be back.

~ArcTheJedi


	6. Land of Waves: Skirmish

Hey all! Hope finals week wasn't too hard on you, or won't be if you're not there yet.

My experiment was a success; since posting that Author's Note weeks ago I've made steady progress because of you guys, and the necessity of keeping my end of the bargain has been teaching me ways to pull myself out of my rut, as well as overcome writer's block. Thanks for your help, guys! There were only two weeks in which nobody checked on me and I got away with being lazy; by contrast, I want to express a special thanks to **Mathemagician93**, who was solely responsible for somewhere between a quarter and a third of this update.

Since I had to take down the Author's Note for this chapter and I intend to continue the bargain, I'll repost the gist of it here in the header from now on:

-I'm going to guarantee at least a page of written progress every week in which somebody asks me about it. I'll end chapters where I feel they should break, but in general I try not to stray too far from 10 pages per update. It's my hope that forcing myself into even an easy routine will help me break out of my writing slump. So there you have it. Drop me a line even as simple as "Hey, how's it coming?" and I will write another page before the end of the week. If you want the next chapter to update sooner, ask me about it. I'm sorry to be so lazy an author, but since I just can't seem to kick myself along I'm going to hand you all some boots. Deal?

While I'm at it, I thought of something extra to add to the incentive, something those who have been checking on me know I've already implemented: for anyone who asks me about progress, I will send back a small sample of the page I wrote that week. (If you'd rather wait and get it all with the update, be sure to tell me so.) Just keep in mind that whatever I send might be subject to revision before the final product!

Only one thing left before we can move on to the chapter, and that's the  
**Disclaimer: This time around I found a YouTube clip that seemed appropriate, so I figured I'd just let it do the talking. Just go to YouTube and add** /watch?v=AcybaZQsZq4&feature=fvwrel **to the end of the address. I apologize in advance if any of you are not familiar with this particular internet meme. Incidentally, I don't own and didn't create anything in that clip either.**

Now that that's over with, enjoy the chapter; you earned it!

* * *

Neji paused at the mouth of the alley to re-test his bearings. He estimated that he wasn't more than two blocks from the source of the explosions earlier. The mists were still muffling the city, but even so the muted sound of angry and panicked voices ahead affirmed his expectation. He knew that Choji would not willingly drag a fight into a populated area from a vacant one -unless he was on the retreat, perhaps- but the Akamichi fighting style tended by nature to include an amount of collateral damage; the Rain, with much less compulsion against harming bystanders, may have forced him this way for tactical advantage.

No sooner had he formed that thought and moved into the street when a figure loomed up ahead, approaching quickly. He flowed into a battle stance, palms out and at the ready, but just as he recognized the silhouette the face of Choji Akamichi came into view.

The heavy ninja didn't look like he was fleeing so much as searching for enemies quietly, much as Neji himself had been. Choji came up short when he recognized Neji. "Hey!" he called quietly but jovially. "Good to see a friendly face out here."

Neji remained at the ready. "How many subbasements are there beneath Hokage Tower?"

Choji blinked. "Four." Neji felt his thin lips tug into a smile, and he rose from his stance. Choji continued, "We should get out of the open. I lost track of-" The sudden flurry of disabling Gentle Fist strikes cut him off.

But rather than react in pain or surprise, 'Choji' merely narrowed his eyes. "Clever trick," he said, before melting into a puddle on the street -a Water Clone. "And here I thought my information was accurate," a tinny-sounding voice continued from somewhere nearby. The mist threw off the sound, obscuring its origin. Neji resumed his ready stance. "Oh well, I think I still prefer our own tricks. What do you think of our fog, Leaf ninja?"

"'Clever,'" Neji returned blandly. "But I hope you are not planning to rely on it."

"Oh, of course not." The mists billowed suddenly, swirling around him, and Neji caught several different sources of movement at the fringe of his impaired vision. He tensed for a reflexive Rotation but forced himself not to show any visible reaction. "But with two Hyuuga around how could we pass it up?" The voice of the Rain shinobi took on a snide tone. "Heh. But of course one of those hasn't kept the name. Where is the Lady Uzumaki? Shall I expect to meet her tonight as well?"

Neji ignored the question. As long as his foe was feeling talkative, he pressed, "And is this attack on the villagers merely another one of your tricks against us?"

"Don't flatter yourself too much. We're here on a job; a crack at you Leaf shinobi is just a bonus. If some of the work we've been paid for happens to distract your bleeding hearts…" The voice chuckled, a sound like air escaping a hose.

Neji turned his head a fraction toward a sudden motion in the mist to his right, but nothing came of it. He'd driven the conversation toward an opportunity to obliquely pursue the information he truly sought; he spoke with a measured degree of sarcasm when he said, "As long as you are attacking civilians and sewing havoc and confusion in the streets, why not kidnap some children to complete the villainy?"

If the Rain ninja recognized the hidden purpose to the question, he betrayed no sign of it. "Feh," he spat derisively. "Oboro would do it. Kagari would have to be ordered to take them alive, but I'd have no part in it. I've seen what threatening children does to Leaf shinobi. We Rain have no love for you, but most of us know better than to provoke that kind of disproportionate retribution, thanks."

"I suppose it is nice to see that even Rain have some standards." Interesting. Standard suspicions of an enemy's word aside, it sounded as though this one genuinely had no knowledge of the plot against the Hokage's children. That proved nothing conclusively, of course, except that the worth of this conversation had reached its end.

Apparently his adversary had reached the same decision. "Ha. 'Standards'. Sure, we can leave it at that. Speaking of which…" A dark form in the standard Rain weather gear and mask drew barely into sight ahead. It wore bandaging over one eye -as did the one to Neji's right, and the two to his left, and the rest scattered around him in a loose ring. "…I've enjoyed our little exchange, Hyuuga," the voice continued from none of them in particular, "but I think it's well past time we cut to the chase, don't you?"

Neji let the corner of his mouth quirk upward. "Indeed."

The one ahead shot forward as if it had been catapulted. Neji flared his Byakugan; the rest of the dark forms were lost in the sudden glare of pulsing chakra, but the shuriken flying in at his back stood out sharply against the muffled sound of its flight. He crouched low and spun.

* * *

Naruto scowled into the dimness, unsure how much was the fog and how much the approach of night. How late was it getting, anyway? He led the way over the rooftops, senses arrayed for the immediate, trusting Konohamaru and his infrared goggles to keep eyes further out.

At first there had been scores of confused villagers scrambling about in the streets below, most hurrying indoors but some out armed with home-style weapons, aware that something was wrong but unable to find a threat to confront; a few of these flinched and startled when the Leaf ninja swooped overhead, gone before they could look up. As they traveled through the city, however, the throng thinned to the occasional fleeing civilian, progressively more terrified. When Konohamaru called for a minor change in course, Naruto was not surprised to smell smoke.

They stopped on a second-story rooftop opposite what used to be a row of small shops and cheap stalls. The largest of the shops was now a cratered ruin, and the blazing wood of the wrecked stands lit up the gloom enough that they could see a group of men wearing bits of armor feeding the blaze and destruction -common thugs, from the smell of the booze, the sound of their cruel and cocky laughter and the haphazard way they swung their weapons around. A cluster of civilians stood nearby, bemoaning the arson and vandalism but unwilling to risk the blades; several badly wounded militia members lay weakly near their dropped weapons. A couple of the thugs stood preventing the other civilians from reaching them.

Just then another of the men came out of a storage shed dragging an extremely well-crafted fishing net. As he threw it, grinning, onto one of the bonfires, one of the villagers let out a piercing cry of dismay; even through the gloom, Naruto recognized the latter as Gan the miserable peddler from their first day in town.

He felt a growl escape his throat, and he stepped up to the ledge.

"Wait," said Konohamaru quickly. A look at his pupil's face showed his disgust as clearly as he felt his own. "Let me. I've been itching for some action since this afternoon. I'll catch up."

Naruto stayed only long enough for the first yelps of surprise and pain to tug at his lip with grim satisfaction.

A minute later he came to a wide empty space spanning two adjacent streets -a plaza of some sort, and one big enough that he couldn't see the far side. He dropped down and began to sprint across the gap. Scattered but orderly piles of construction material loomed out of the pale around him like specters. Either the mists were particularly thick here, or the acoustics of this plaza were strange; he could barely hear the sound of his own footsteps, let alone anything else in the town. He felt a chill begin to creep down his spine…

And then suddenly that chill manifested as a piercing cold at his feet. At the speed of a thought Naruto created a shadowclone to fling himself aside. Facing himself midflight, Naruto saw the clone enveloped in a column of ice. The clone dissipated as quickly as it had appeared, and Naruto threw a shuriken over his shoulder toward the motion it had noticed in its brief life. Before his own feet touched the ground again, the shuriken landed squarely between the eyes of a dark figure huddled beside bags of cement.

The would-be assassin simply popped, spraying water like a ruptured balloon. An arrogant laugh stabbed into the oppressive silence. "Sharp as always, Uzumaki. Good. That will make this all the more enjoyable."

Naruto scanned the plaza carefully, guard and senses at the ready. "Oh yeah? Glad I can put on a show, though I have to wonder about someone who finds getting their butt kicked 'enjoyable'."

The very next moment he had to deflect or dodge a hail of shuriken from several directions. "You've mocked me for the last time, you witless fool!" came the snarling reply as another figure rushed out of the gloom, brandishing some claw-like weapon.

Naruto easily turned aside the charging strike and subsequent strikes, returning a pepper of blows of his own, though his opponent blocked them with his other, armored arm. "I seriously doubt that." Naruto feigned another punch to the midsection and instead slapped the other ninja to the face. The return blow was savage -and clumsy. Sidestepping quickly, Naruto trapped the claw arm to his side, forcing them to stand shoulder to shoulder. Catching the other fist with his free hand, he stuck his tongue out and crossed his eyes -"See, look, I'm mocking you again"- before twisting sharply, breaking the trapped arm. Once he did, however, the arm slithered out of his hold like a wet noodle before whiplashing the claw back at his head. Naruto barely had time to think _'Well, that's new'_ before ducking the blades. The enemy resumed its onslaught, flailing its boneless limbs in a lashing barrage. Playing a hunch, Naruto drew his concealed short-edge and thrust it forward. When the clawed 'limb' wrapped around the blade, Naruto channeled wind chakra and jerked it back, slicing it free again. Another flick of the weapon and both arms flew free. "Seriously though, you make it sound like we've got history," he resumed casually.

The water clone stepped back casually, leaking profusely from its severed elbows. "Oh, we go way back, you and I," the disembodied voice claimed. "Don't you recognize the face of your doom?" Before the clone dissipated entirely, the standard issue Rain mask melted away, revealing a thin face beneath full and wildly sweeping black hair, sporting a cruel smirk, the cunning eyes of a weasel, and a thick, ugly flattened nose. Oboro… something-or-other. He was sure the Rain ninja _had_ a last name, but he couldn't think of it. He'd run afoul of this guy the first time in the Forest of Death, and then again in the Land of Tea, and ever since Oboro had been fixated on him, like some kind of psychopathically evil version of Bushy Brow. His nose hadn't always been so disfigured; that particular memory tugged a grin onto the Hokage's face.

Quickly stifling it to a barely-controlled smirk, he mused, "Jog my memory a little. I've pissed off a _lot_ of pretenders over the years and after a while you all just kinda blend together."

Instead of draining away, the maimed clone exploded toward him, spraying water that froze into needles of ice en-route. One palm outstretched, Naruto swirled enough energy to scatter them harmlessly. Afterwards he noticed the sounds had been obscuring a steady stream of profanity and curses; a dozen more water clones came recklessly charging out of the mists, each of them rattling off un-generous speculation about his family history and physiological makeup. The Hokage generated an equal number of shadow clones to fight them, largely so that he could play back each distinct stream for his own enjoyment later. "…_always_ been this cocky, ever since you got lucky in the Chunin Exams!" finished one of the voices.

In the middle of the war of clones, Naruto stood waiting with feigned disinterest. "Why shouldn't I be cocky if it's so justified?" he called. One of the clones tugged at the tail of its coat, drawing his attention. Beyond it he saw a pile of bagged cement and cinder blocks. Very intentionally, he looked away and focused on a different stack of wood and beams. "I beat you single-handedly when I was _twelve_, and every time we've met since it ends the same way." Meanwhile, a water clone who had been watching the battle from the fringe circled carefully toward the cement and blocks. When it got there it whirled and leapt into the stack, Rasengan howling. The explosion sprayed cement and cinder all over the plaza; the real Naruto evaded the destruction, but the shadow clones seized their opponents and dragged them into the path of the hurtling debris, destroying them all. The remaining doppelganger stumbled back from the epicenter, reverting to its true appearance as a shadow clone before dissipating entirely.

After a moment Oboro's voice came again, sounding uninjured and in much better control. "Nice try. Nearly forgot why you insult your betters so aggressively," -his tone became lofty and condescending- "but the next leader of the Rain has better composure than that."

Beginning to feel annoyed, Naruto set himself again, peering out into the blasted fog. This was taking longer than he liked. "You? Head of Rain?" He snorted. "I wish you the best of luck with that. Honestly, I do. The shinobi world could use a new laughing stock."

"Yeah, that's right, laugh it up while you can, Uzumaki, because-"

"I know, I know, 'you've got me right where you want me', right?" He shook his head and sighed. "Man, would it kill any of you self-proclaimed arch-enemies to be at least a little creative? Do I even need to point out that you haven't even touched me yet? I can keep this up all day." To punctuate the taunt he dropped his guard and assumed an easy pose, hands back behind his head. Despite his apparent ease, he was still watching closely for signs of movement.

He wasn't prepared for Oboro's smug reply. "So can I. While I hold you here and my teammates keep your underlings busy, our hired scum will bleed this village at the wrists." Naruto grew very still, and his eyes narrowed, hardened. More shadowy figures had appeared in his periphery, but now a few of them fell back out of view. "In fact, while I toy with you I might just send one of these clones to make some fresh corpses to show you. Does that sound like fun?" When the Hokage dropped his arms back to his sides and said nothing for a long moment Oboro laughed and sneered, "What's the matter Uzumaki, where's your funny guy routine now?"

But now that Naruto understood the method of revenge his foe meant to take, he'd lost interest in playing their game. Oboro didn't have to win their fight; if Naruto tried to leave without dealing with him he would gladly retaliate against innocent civilians, and now that Naruto had tried goading him into a mistake once, he wasn't likely to fall for it again. As long as Oboro could stay hidden and keep his cool, he figured he would win simply by gut-punch to the conscience.

Well okay then. If this Rain wannabe wanted the Sixth Hokage to stop playing nice, he'd get what he wished for.

Naruto was reaching for the special three-pronged shuriken in his pouch when an explosion blossomed off to his left. All of the water clones stumbled and turned, the jutsu controlling them clearly faltering; foregoing the Flying Thunder darts, Naruto instead fired a quick volley of kunai, popping each clone at the neck. Not a second later another Rain-garbed ninja flew into his field of vision, dropping into a roll that put out the singed edges of his cloak.

Another voice called out from above somewhere. "You know, the problem with the Water Clone jutsu, the one thing none of you Rain have ever managed to fix, is that they have a lot less body heat than you do." Landing lightly in a crouch next to the Hokage, Konohamaru adjusted his infrared goggles and smirked at the dirty glare Oboro stabbed his way.

"Took you long enough," observed Naruto casually as he moved up beside his pupil, spaced far enough that the other ninja did not have an easy shot at both of them. "Did those drunken punks actually cause you trouble or something?"

The younger Leaf snorted. "Hardly. Guess it was enough warm-up for some real exercise though. If you don't mind?"

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. "Alone, huh?"

The Rain snarled. "Don't you dare slough ME off like some nobody, Uzumaki! You're not going anywhere!"

Eyes never moving from their foe, Naruto simply raised his voice. "Hey, Nabooru or whatever your name was, I know it looks like it, but does it _sound_ like I'm talking to you? Just be a good boy and wait quietly for a minute, would ya?" The other ninja seemed to convulse for a while then, clenching and re-clenching hands and jaws, issuing sounds that could not be healthy for his vocal chords.

Enjoying the show, Konohamaru mused, "He's not all there upstairs, is he."

"He definitely crossed the 'obsessed' threshold a few years back," Naruto agreed, his tone lowered to privacy again. "His name's Oboro, and he's had clone envy ever since that first year we met. Specialized the heck out of the Water Clone Jutsu, so you're well-equipped to put him down." He thought of the boneless whiplash from earlier and added, "Don't let your guard down though; he's also got the standard bag of Rain tricks, and every time I see him he's got some new surprises."

"Got it." The younger ninja reached for his pouch. "See you in a few minutes, Boss."

"I'll try to leave you something to do." Naruto turned to leave.

Oboro snapped out of his lather and lunged at the Hokage, all manner of blades gleaming: shuriken, kunai, and clawed Rain gauntlet. Naruto did not move, but watched out of the corner of his eye as a peppering of small explosions deflected all of the projectiles, and when the resulting smoke washed away Konohamaru stood forehead-to-forehead with Oboro, claw tangled on kunai. The young Leaf's other hand held a number of slim senbon needles, poised opposite the Rain's free arm.

"The Boss is a busy guy," he explained coolly. "If you want to take up any more of his time, I suggest you make an appointment. Oh, and by the way, I took a quick look and I don't there's a civilian around for several blocks in any direction. If you really want to send a clone and split your attention and energy that far, be my guest." He gestured with the senbon, tools usually equipped only to ninja trained as medics or rogue-ninja hunters -and Konohamaru was no medic.

Satisfied, Naruto leapt up out of the plaza. There was another loud exchange behind him, but this time he didn't even bother to look. He briefly considered leaving a clone or two just in case, but decided there was no reason to offend the kid.

* * *

Neji bided his time carefully. At first the Rain had sent waves of water clones to overwhelm him, but Neji had proved the superior fighter and came through without a scratch. Then his enemy had resorted to a barrage of projectiles and traps, with fewer clones continuing to harass and distract him. By alternating between Byakugan and unaided sight, Neji had been able to evade the onslaught without being blinded by the chakra mist.

Now, as he expected, jutsu entered the mix. First a bladed harpoon of ice came whizzing past his face. It jerked mid-flight and scythed back around toward his dodge. Neji continued the standing roll, twirling beneath its path and flicking one hand up and behind. Trailing chakra from his fingertips, he slashed the inscrutable chakra line tethering the harpoon; it tumbled loose and speared the water clone rushing up from the other direction.

Next would be the attempt to overpower by surprise. With a piercing roar, a Water Dragon Jutsu bore down on Neji from out of the gloom. It was smaller than usual without a source of liquid water, but still a good deal larger than a horse. Setting his stance, lighting his Byakugan and flaring his fingers to widen the impact and dispersal, Neji crashed into the water dragon head on, meeting it with an immediate _**Eight Trigrams, 2- 4- 8-Palms!**_ Before he could continue to 16-Palms, however, a trio of water clones came rushing up from behind. Abandoning the progressive attack, Neji spun into a small _**Rotation**_. The palm strikes had destabilized the chakra forming the water dragon and kept it at bay; the whirling blast annihilated it as effectively as it did the clones.

There would be a subtle attack masked beneath that loud and direct assault… There, at his feet; the dispersing water clones had released a collection of tiny pellets, hissing as they discreetly released some sort of gas. Continuing his momentum, Neji fired a second burst of _**Rotation**_, blowing them away before they had a chance to deliver their dose. As he slowed a second time, he saw globes of water condensing in the air all around him. Doubtless these would be charged with chakra in an attempt to blind his Byakugan and prevent him from reacting to the incoming hail of shuriken and kunai. But Neji had already disengaged his enhanced sight in anticipation, and the nigh-invisible ninja threads he had released during the second Rotation swatted the projectiles out of the air.

Over the course of this battle the Hyuuga had used Rotation several times. Extensive training had allowed him to increase the efficiency of the jutsu, dramatically reducing the strain it put on his reserves. But the ease of use was not the reason for its repeated application here, as the hapless water clone who had a moment ago been safely beyond his field of vision discovered. Using two of the threads, Neji lassoed the clone and whiplashed it through a complex orbit, splattering the water globes that had begun to draw together into a Water Prison. Taking a few circular steps to extend the radius, he also swept his captive through the ring of water clones beyond the periphery until the threads swung free of the dispersing water.

Still no sign of the Rain's real self. Neji had been studying his enemy through his tactics; the other shinobi was methodical, analytical, not unlike himself. He had been systematically probing Neji's defenses, and his methods had all been indirect. He was probably hidden outside the range of the actual combat, but close enough and with enough vantage to observe it in detail. He'd been careful to circle his clones around and vary the direction of his attacks to disguise his location, but every time Rotation had pushed back the mist, Neji had noted, evaluated, and rejected possible refuges.

The Water Dragon had been the nail in the coffin. That jutsu could not be performed by a clone, nor sustained long enough to move it far before attacking. Of the remaining possibilities, only one was within its estimated range. Now he needed only an opportunity.

An opportunity that presented itself a moment later, when the ground at his feet froze over. Neji was careful to mask his surge of satisfaction. His foe was undoubtedly trying to hinder his nimble movements, but what he did not realize was that practicing on ice was a staple of Hyuuga training for those same movements. Furthermore, if he was guessing correctly, this particular jutsu was not one that could be undone quickly. It was a miscalculation that would cost him.

Neji used the ninja threads to lash hold of a (by now) battered lamp post and pull himself into sudden velocity. Discarding his anchor, he rushed up on yet another bank of water clones and carved a path of destruction through their ranks, skating from figure to figure faster than they could react. Perhaps sensing his mistake, his unseen adversary tried to catch at his feet with a growth of ice, but Neji simply released a controlled burst of chakra to destroy the obstruction and quickly rebuilt his momentum, hunting through the street.

Up until this point Neji had been playing the cornered, incapacitated mouse his opponent thought him to be. This sudden aggressive shift had clearly surprised and agitated the Rain; doppelgangers, explosive tags, and water-based jutsu cascaded hastily into his path, with far less deliberate pattern and forethought. Neji danced his way through all of it, twirling away and around and under with catlike grace, destroying the clones with a tap as he passed, almost as an afterthought.

A thick spire of ice stabbed out of the ground ahead. With a quick twirl and lunge, Neji avoided being impaled. Then as he sailed past it, he hooked a chakra-infused hand on the ice and let it yank his feet off the ground. Running up the nearby wall as he spun around the spire, he launched himself through the air back the way he came, sailing squarely through the second-story window of a building across the street.

Three Rain-clad figures were already stumbling back from his sudden arrival. This ruse did not faze Neji; as he knew there would be no fog in this room, his already-active Byakugan easily picked out the real ninja's chakra patterns from the chaotic slurries of his doppelgangers. Without slowing -almost without touching the ground- Neji rushed his adversary to deliver the Gentle Fist. The Rain reacted fast enough to twist and present his profile, so Neji began by attacking the chakra points on his arm. He had barely crossed the distance, however, before the surge of light from the clones alerted him to his own mistake.

Unlike Shadow Clones, which are formed to be as close to identical to their user as possible down to their apparent weight and circulatory networks, Water Clones are simply volumes of water held together by meager supplies of energy; more chakra (but still not much) is spent shaping and retaining their 'mold' and feeding the minor genjutsu bestowing their appearance. Meant to be cheap, convenient, mindless puppets, their haphazard composition is easily exposed by even the most basic sensor-type jutsu. But that same chaotic structure can still be used to conceal something at their center.

Something like the explosive tags in the process of activating while their hosts rushed Neji's back.

Already committed, Neji delivered two pinpoint strikes to the bicep before his foe fell back and the Hyuuga spun on his heel to face the explosions. For an instant of brightness Neji could tell it was cold, not heat washing over his face. Fortunately he was already setting his countermeasure in motion; emitting a controlled burst of energy from every chakra point on the front of his body, Neji projected it all forward into a protective layer. When the oncoming force was about to wash over him, Neji took hold of the screen with chakra-sheathed hands, wrenched it into a circle and thrust it forward.

_**Rotation: Force Wall!**_

The explosions rebounded from the technique, spending most of their energy blowing out the window through which the Hyuuga had entered the room, though not in the manner he first expected; through the conspicuous lack of smoke Neji saw that entire half of the room had been coated in ice. He had not risked the standard form of Rotation to avoid blowing out the floor beneath him, but the congealing pattern and thickness of the ice made him suspect that he had furthermore avoided being trapped in a dome of ice.

No time to ponder the consequences of a failed trap. The Rain had already fled the room, and Neji rushed in pursuit. Wary of more surprises, Neji instinctively leapt out of the open window in the hallway and rebounded off the next wall to the roof. The oppressive fog had begun to wane, possibly due in part to the many fires burning all over the city. As a result, Neji barely caught sight of a dark-clad figure swinging by a wall-mounted flagpole into an alleyway up the street. The motion was awkward; Neji's abbreviated attack had still impaired the motor function of his foe's arm. The Hyuuga was quick on his heels.

By chance or design, the street in which he had been fighting had been empty of bystanders, but as he pursued the Rain he realized the background din of voices was drawing nearer. Pursing grim lips, Neji turned the next corner-

-and came face-to-face with Choji Akamichi again. This time his apparent comrade had seen some battle; nicks and scratches in his armor matched the nicks and scratches on his arms and face that Akamichis were prone to gathering, and several patches of his outfit and hair were soaking wet. One lock was frozen. The hefty ninja had a cheerful smile on his face… but he also remained crouched low in a fighting posture. "Heya," he greeted casually through his guard. "Come to join the party?"

Neji, who had already assumed his own battle stance, asked carefully, "What is the number of subbasements beneath Hokage Tower?"

Noting the specific wording of the question, Choji raised an eyebrow. "Four." Without waiting for a reply he turned his guard outward into the gloom. "One of 'em pretended to be me, huh?"

Neji likewise turned to their surroundings. The fog had thinned enough in this area that his Byakugan's sight was not dazzling. The smell of thick smoke nearby likely explained this benefit; the site of one of the explosions earlier was close. "There _is_ a reason those protocols are in place, after all."

"Eh, cut Naruto some slack. He just hates remembering passwords and codes."

"Did I mention him?" But the Hyuuga let it pass with that comment and a mild sense of satisfaction.

Choji snorted. "I take it your Rain buddy is nearby too?"

"Indeed."

"So if we've met up, they definitely have."

"I do not believe I have yet caused enough harm to force a retreat." He paused, posing the unspoken question. Choji shook his head. "And given the proximity of civilians, they are likely to attempt the use of human shields and similar tactics," he continued.

A grunt. "Any sign of the others? I sent Konohamaru back alone, hope he didn't run into trouble."

"He had not by the time I saw him, and that was some time ago. I came in advance, so I do not know the present state of our other allies. They may be here at any moment, but we must proceed assuming we are on our own."

Neji saw Choji nodding thoughtfully behind him. "So. Wanna bet two Leaf together are better than two Rain?"

"I never bet on the obvious."

* * *

The chair which he'd been given was entirely too large for Harimatsu's comfort. He was a poor man in character and he knew it; the presence of so much blatant wealth and luxury here was completely alien to him. Like an overbearing and tangible force, he could feel the presence of power in this office… and also its allure. The heart-pounding enticement of money and all that comes with it was part of what intimidated him.

Of course, a lot of things intimidated Harimatsu; the man on the other side of the desk making his sword very apparent, for example. And yet, he was nothing compared to the man seated in the even larger chair, the wielder of all this daunting, thrilling power. And Hari had come to do business with him.

Gapol spread his arms casually. "Pleasure to see you both here again. Let's get right down to business, shall we?"

Feeling very much like a mouse beneath that catlike smile, Hari mostly felt he'd like to get right down into the crevices of his enormous chair. Beside him, Kichita took his arm and held it firmly, causing him to force a deep breath. The gesture of support was a dual-sided one; her fingers trembled a little bit, and as always she was counting on him to do the talking. This was for their benefit. He could do it for them.

"Y… yes." Gingerly, he lifted Kichita's grocery basket and placed it on the desktop. "Here- here is proof of payment, a-as usual. The finest goods in this, this shipment were designer silks." After a long pause, he added, "I-I've included the sample with the, the list." When Gapol continued to merely stare at him expectantly, Hari jumped and slid the basket across, bending over the desktop to put it within Gapol's easy reach.

Looking a little annoyed at the delay, the magnate immediately pawed through the contents. He was in no hurry; in fact Hari suspected he was intentionally letting Hari and Kichita stew in their nervousness while he read, slowly, through the condensed manifest. When he finished, he raised the bolt of silk in his hand to his face. "Very fine indeed," he said. "You know, the really funny thing is, I think I signed a contract with the man who ordered these just earlier today."

Kichita stirred. Hari quickly put his other hand on hers. "S-so if everything is in order," he said, trying to accelerate things, "when should, should I expect you… your men" -his eyes flicked to the armed bodyguard- "to move the shipment?"

Gapol, who had watched their little exchange with a smug smile, suddenly thrust the silk back into Kichita's basket, set the whole thing out of sight behind his desk, and leaned back in his chair. "Actually, I don't think I'm going to pay for the hours this time. Feel free to have _your_ workers bring over the shipment… oh, any time really. Within the next three days."

Hari pounding heart sped along a little faster to keep up with his mind. Kichita's hand was beginning to cut off circulation. "Wh- O-ours? But, but that will expose us!" He'd never kept the basket before.

The smug smile widened into a satisfied grin. "That's right, you two come the long way around, outside of town. Even so, you must have heard some of the fireworks." The mercenary beside him chuckled. "Things are about to be very different around here."

Hari sat back slowly, going very still. He'd known this was coming. It was the real reason he'd been part of all this, even though it meant betraying his friend. But it had all paid off; tonight, at least, he would be out of danger. Only a little waiting left; tomorrow it would all be over.

"I can think of at least one difference right now, Gapol. The rats' nest is out in the open."

Hari almost leapt out of his seat and spun toward the door.

Kichita gasped. "No!"

In his horror the harbormaster was a beat behind her. "What-! What are _you_ doing here-?"

* * *

_"Hey, Naruto." Just before they could rush out of Inari's house into the town, Kiba pulled him aside in the doorway. "I finally figured it out."_

_Naruto frowned. "Figured what?"_

_"Those guys that I didn't see on Gapol's building. Just before they disappeared, I caught a whiff of something. I couldn't place it at the time, but now I've got it." The wild ninja's face scrunched up. "They smelled… clean."_

_Naruto blinked. "You stopped me to tell me they bathe regularly?"_

_Kiba shook his head. "Cleaner than that. Sterile. Like an operating room at the hospital, you know? That smell that makes you think even your breath is contaminating the place."_

_Now it was Naruto's turn to look puzzled. "That doesn't make any sense. How-"_

_"-did I smell a clean room in the middle of a sun-baked roof between a forest treeline and an ocean beach?" Kiba quirked his lip. "I- have- no- i-dea. But your nose is almost as good as mine. Figured you should know."_

_"Hey Boss, what's the holdup?" called Konohamaru from the courtyard. Just then Akamaru came trotting out of Inari's room toward them._

_"Got his scent, boy?" Kiba asked. The hound barked an affirmative._

_Naruto nodded. "Good luck. Keep your, uh, everything peeled, I guess."_

_The wild ninja grinned. "Always."_

At present Naruto stood at the mouth of a quiet lane bending sharply away from the path he'd been following. Gapol's office lay further ahead. He could see patches of light that had to be enormous blazes through the fog in the distance, and yet he lingered.

He suddenly knew exactly what Kiba had meant by a 'sterile' smell. It was coming from somewhere down this lane. It looked like a neighborhood street lined with average houses, but not only was there not a soul in sight, there wasn't even a hint of the destruction raging all around it.

There was no chance Oboro and his goons were involved in the kidnapping. Incompetence aside, he never would have passed up the chance to gloat if he knew anything about it. These mystery shinobi, on the other hand, fit the bill all too easily. And they were right in front of him.

The smell began to fade. He jerked a step forward by reflex, and suddenly the scent was back again, as full as before. He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes. It was a trap; he knew it had to be. But it was also the best lead to Kei and Zumi that he'd found so far.

He turned and looked out at the village of the Land of Waves. It was under attack. Homes and livelihoods were burning, people were bleeding, dying. It wasn't like he was ignoring it; his Leaf ninja were out there, and even a few of his shadow clones were in the fray. Inari couldn't have made it very far before Kiba caught up to him, right?

_Come on, guys, don't let me down. I'll be right back, believe it._ He turned back and advanced into the silent lane.

* * *

(End)

* * *

Keep bugging me about progress and I'll keep making it, but in the meantime don't forget to review! Also, if you have any questions about the story thus far or my plans for it, I'd be happy to answer you, within spoiler limits.

Until next time, though I hope to hear from you sooner,

~ArcTheJedi

P.S. As long as I'm tossing around evil memes, anyone who knows what I'm talking about has just lost The Game. ;P


	7. Land of Waves: Revelation

Hey all, glad to be back with your (more regularly) scheduled update. Speaking of which, here's my standing author/reader offer reposted:

-I'm going to guarantee at least a page of written progress every week in which somebody asks me about it. I'll end chapters where I feel they should break, but in general I try not to stray too far from 10 pages per update. It's my hope that forcing myself into even an easy routine will help me break out of my writing slump. So there you have it. Drop me a line even as simple as "Hey, how's it coming?" and I will write another page before the end of the week. If you want the next chapter to update sooner, ask me about it. For anyone who does, I'll even send back a small sample of the page I wrote that week. (If you'd rather wait and get it all with the update, be sure to tell me so.) Just keep in mind that whatever I send might be subject to revision before the final product! I'm sorry to be so lazy an author, but since I just can't seem to kick myself along I'm going to hand you all some boots. Deal?

Once again, special thanks go out to Mathemagician93 for being the only one to take me up on this offer more than once or twice. I am getting better at motivating myself, slowly, but his singlehanded persistence still probably knocked off at least two months of update-wait. Thanks for the reliable push over those writer-block molehills, MM.

**Disclaimer: How many Fanfic authors does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Answer: Trick question, none of them own one.**

* * *

"What-! What are you doing here-

-Inari?"

The famous Shipbuilder cast a wounded look at his harbormaster and his wife, but when he spoke he addressed Gapol again. "In a minute I'm going to go round up the militia and put down this little insurrection, but first I'd like to hear it from you. _Why?_" Kichita drew closer to him, but Inari consciously moved away from her. She shuddered as if she'd been struck, her face pinched with dread.

"Why what, Inari?" said Gapol with a smile. "I'm afraid you're going to have to be more specific."

"All of it!" gritted Inari. "I didn't want to believe it." He cast another glance over Hari and Kichita, and both shrank beneath it. "Any of it." He pinned the magnate with the brunt of his betrayed expression. "But you _have_ been stealing shipments. You've been extorting our own people. How can you-"

"How can _you_ still not know?" replied Gapol. "Really, it's not like I made any secret of it." He counted two on his fingers. "Money. Power. I came here for both, and I'm in the midst of making them. Couldn't be simpler."

"I don't believe that's all you care about. Don't you remember, back when we were friends-"

"No," said Gapol bluntly. "We were not." Inari rocked back on his heels in stunned confusion. The shorter man leaned forward, clasping his hands on his desk. "The key to promotion for any employee is to kiss the shoes of his superior. That's why I said greeted you so graciously each day, why I worked overtime for free," he turned a charming smile that was a little too oily toward Kichita, "one of the reasons I attended your wedding…" She reddened. Inari instinctively moved toward her but stopped himself. "I ate your soggy ramen with you whenever I could stomach it because you asked me to. I complemented you and made up stories to share over your drink because every word pulled me up the ladder." He looked at his former employer like an appraiser studying an unimpressive item. "I was never going to be satisfied with the second-highest rung, but I jumped ship when I realized something. You know what your problem is, Inari? You're not only hopelessly naïve and proud of it, you're also full of yourself on top of it. It never even occurs to you that you might be unlikeable, does it? You think your friendships are absolute, that no one you've ever shared a meal with could possibly mean you harm." He made a noise of disgust. "Ever since I left it's only taken the occasional token gesture to keep you convinced of your own delusion. Could you be any more willfully misguided?"

"Don't you talk about him like that!" the hot reply came from Kichita, face still aflame.

"Ha! Are you really in a position to defend him, my lovely dear…" he set her basket back on the desk, intentionally spilling its incriminating contents. "…when you've been sabotaging him for- -has it already been years?"

"Th-that was-! That was-"

"That was your idea in the first place, as I recall. At the suggestion and cooperation of our mutual friend here, of course," he added with a nod toward Harimatsu. The harbormaster seemed unable to gather his wits enough to speak, trembling uncontrollably as his eyes shot between the other men in the office. He flinched beneath Gapol's acknowledgement.

Inari, who had been grinding his teeth for some time, had trouble speaking too. "…Okay," he said finally, "I always knew you were an ambitious businessman. Too ambitious for my comfort. If I really was never anything but a competitor for you, then I get it. You undermined me. You pirated my shipments and kept the profits for yourself. It's illegal and underhanded, but it's just business. If that was everything… I'm still not sure I would believe it, but I would understand." He suddenly strode forward and slammed his palms onto Gapol's desk. "But now you've made it personal!" The armed bodyguard surged forward in return and put his hand on his hilt, a gesture Inari ignored. "You're behind this attack on the town, aren't you? Our own people -your own clients! There's no sense in it! Call it off right now, or else!"

At that the bodyguard growled and bared an inch of steel. Someone gasped. It wasn't Gapol. "Or else what, Inari? You'll lecture me into submission? Perhaps you intend to fight your way past my _swords_man with 'these two arms' you're always talking about. As for why attack the town…?" He snorted in amusement. "You're the king of a town of fools, but independent ones nonetheless. They only accepted your monopoly because your suicidal business plan gave them the far better end of the deal. Since I actually intend to make real money with mine, I have to arrange the other condition for which people will cooperate: when they have no choice." He knit his hands together and smiled like a well-fed cat. "My thugs aren't going to destroy the city. They're just going to break it a bit, until they're certain to need the help of a wealthy entrepreneur to rebuild."

The muscles in Inari's clenched fists and jaw were throbbing. "…And you think you're going to get away with that?" he asked quietly.

"I've signed a number of exclusive trade agreements with the Hidden Rain Village for protection from international interests. As for local authorities…" The cat smile widened into a grin as Gapol glanced at someone over Inari's shoulder. "Ah, come in Wong. Your timing couldn't be better."

* * *

Naruto Uzumaki sprinted down the street, dodging villagers as he rushed toward the epicenter of their panicked flight. As he passed one young man, however, the latter abruptly turned and slashed at the shinobi with a concealed blade. As the Hokage responded to the sudden attack, he smiled-

-and exploded in a gout of smoke, from which Choji Akamichi's giant hand swatted the weapon -and attacker- through the air. From out of the shadows, Neji Hyuuga leapt to intercept the ballistic individual. The Rain ninja, disguise also dispelled, twisted in midair and launched his clawed gauntlet like a grappling hook, dragging him back down to ground level. Choji moved to press the attack, but spears of ice from somewhere further ahead drove him back. Neji, who had kept sight of his enemy, gave pursuit as soon as he landed, but he too was curtailed when his target plucked a young boy off his feet and flung him over his shoulder into Neji's face. The Hyuuga caught the terrified child and set him on his way while Choji charged past.

The smell of smoke was growing closer.

* * *

Inari frowned at the newcomer, a wiry man with prominent front teeth and neatly parted black hair. "Wong? Wait, I know you… Yes. You're from the mayor's office."

"Is it done?" Gapol asked expectantly.

Suddenly Hari sucked in a gasp. "'Fireworks.' You didn't-!"

The aide flashed a smug glance around the room. "I'm going to need that bonus after all, boss."

The magnate looked annoyed. "You're joking. He actually survived the blast?"

"He was hanging on when I found him. Almost looked like he was going to make a recovery too." The weasel gravely set a bloodied knife on the desktop as if in reverence. "Poor guy."

Half of the faces in the room paled. Kichita looked greenest. "H-Hyo…" she stammered. When she began to shake she latched onto her husband's arm. In his own shock, Inari let her.

"Get that off of there before you ruin the wood," Gapol snapped disdainfully. Once his minion complied, he leaned back again and resumed his smile. "Now we need only hear from the Peacekeepers' Office."

* * *

Neji and Choji stood silently in the street, at the ready but very, very still. The blasted-out shell of a building guttered and creaked beside them. Three or four bodies lay scattered around it, tatters of the Peacekeepers' uniform visible between their burns.

Facing the Leaf shinobi, the Rain with one eye covered stood with a kunai to the throat of a terrified young woman held before him like a shield. The other enemy stood brandishing his weapons in anticipation. "You see how this is going to work, right?" said the first. "It's a cliché, but you move, she dies." His captive whimpered as he continued, "Of course, if your sense outweighs your honor I'm willing to repeat the process until we run out of stragglers."

The Leafs glanced at each other and remained still. The Rain waded toward them.

* * *

Inari missed the next couple of minutes of discussion between Gapol and his employees -mostly an argument about wages and bonuses- while he stared at the crimson-splashed dagger blankly, trying to reconcile it with everything he had thought he understood. The fact that his friend's lifeblood was now dripping on the expensive carpet and furnishings failed to register as completely as though it had been communicated in a foreign language.

Eventually he hit upon the only possible explanation. "You're monsters…" he breathed in sudden realization. Undertones of utmost revulsion crept into the dumbfounded shock in his voice as he looked at the short, wealthy merchant in a completely different way. "You're Gato all over again."

Gapol looked faintly amused. "Now that does hurt, Inari. I have ten times the business sense as that departed fool. Gato reduced the town to peasantry and starved himself squeezing blood from stones and overcharging their meager exports. I'm only breaking the Land of Waves to put it squarely in my debt. I'll take care of the town, expand it again -it's my investment after all- but I'm going to be the one at the reigns collecting profits this time, not you."

Inari thrust out his jaw. "I put an end to Gato, and I'll put an end to you." Someone drew in a breath next to him and he suddenly remembered that Kichita was on his arm. With a harsh growl, he shook off the woman who had betrayed him.

* * *

The window of the bombed-out building next to the shinobi showdown had somehow mostly survived the blast -only to be shattered when a body came flying through it. The one-eyed Rain turned his gaze toward it for only a fraction of a second before he caught himself, but the opening was there.

Choji knelt and blazed through a series of handsigns. _**"Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"**_ he shouted, slamming a fist into the street. The Rain cursed and leapt back when the ground at his feet broke, but he was not the target. His hostage let out a yelp of surprise as she was suddenly dragged into the earth.

At the same moment, Neji burst toward their other adversary. The enemy reflexively slashed with his weapon- -and cleaved the approaching form neatly in two.

The tag on the upper half of the log that tumbled past his head let out a blinding flash and a sharp _CRACK_ that split the muted night and sent the Rain reeling. Before he could recover, Choji tackled him with a full body slam that sent him flying. The hefty Leaf casually tossed the lower half of the log aside as he extended a massive growing arm to catch his foe and slam him into the ground.

Meanwhile the other Rain had sprung forward again to execute the head now sticking out of the street, but when she disappeared in a small puff of smoke, he paused just long enough for the half-log Choji had discarded to sail past him. The explosive tag on it blazed brightly for an instant before splattering the Water Clone across the ground.

At the mouth of a nearby alley there was a sudden rumble as Neji erupted from the earth beneath another one-eyed Rain. This one tried to dodge like the previous, but a quick touch to his knee stymied him long enough for Neji to drive the heel of his hand into his chin in a leaping upward strike, lifting him off his feet. As soon as Neji touched down he spun into a Rotation, blasting his stunned foe away.

Choji threw his opponent as well, aiming to intercept one ballistic Rain with another. The two twisted around enough that they caught each other without colliding, but limbs impaired by the Gentle Fist made it clumsy and they landed hard.

They struggled to get their balance as the Leaf closed in on either side. The one-eyed shinobi chuckled darkly, wincing through his breather mask. "Guess you win this round, Leaf ninja. Already looking forward to the next one."

His companion cursed. "We won't forget this!" He threw down pellets of some sort that seemed to instantly encase them in blocks of ice that promptly shattered, no trace of shinobi to be seen.

Neji held up his left fist and looked between the hole he'd started from and the one he'd tunneled to. "That felt entirely too familiar… and satisfying," he said, sounding a little perturbed.

"And where do you think YOU'RE crawling off to, you filthy swine?" The new voice drew his attention back toward the bombed-out building. The individual who'd made such a convenient distraction moments before was attempting to hobble away from a craggy middle-aged man. Both wore the uniform of the local Peacekeepers; the former was tall and slim, untouched by flame, and was probably a handsome-looking young man underneath his massive black eye and various abrasions and swellings; the latter was built like a bear, had his eyebrows and patches of his hair singed off, and the side of his face not featuring a fresh burn probably would have been ruddy even if it weren't crimson with fury.

Rising from the side of one of the dead bodies, the larger man stalked over and plucked the battered one off the street by the scruff of his shirt as easily as if he'd been taking a coat from a rack. "Five officers dead because of you," he growled, walking back almost casually. "Five good men and women you've known for years. And you stuck a knife in their backs." He threw his hapless victim down at the body he'd been examining a moment before; a young woman. "Look at her!" he roared, slamming the man's head into the pavement once. "Look, you maggot-infested sack of rat intestines!" He smeared his captive's face into the blood seeping from the gashes on the woman's face. "Own it! Let it be burned into your memory! Because I swear to all the powers that be that you are going to live a long, long time and you are never going to be _allowed_ to forget it!" The traitor whimpered, but Neji suspected he was well beyond comprehending anything he saw or heard at this point.

Rising, the burly man shouted back into the remains of the building. "Motoi! Yaguchi!" Another pair of Peacekeepers came hustling out at his call. They looked a little worse for wear -the woman was nursing an arm and the man's whole face bore a mild burn- but both were armed and wore determined expressions. "I've left an ugly mess on the street," he continued, gesturing at his feet. "Clean it up."

The woman hesitated. "Sir, the jail was directly beneath the blast. I don't think we have any usable cells left."

At first the reply was icy. "Then find a storage closet, or a shed with a lock on it. I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU DO, JUST MAKE SURE THIS PUTRID PILE OF DISEASED SNAKE DROPPINGS-" there was a groan at his well-placed kick "-DOESN'T OOZE AWAY, GOT IT?"

She snapped to attention. "Yes, sir!"

"And you," barked the chief at the other man, "round up every Peacekeeper and militia member in town -drag them from their houses if you have to- and get them organized. Tell them they will have to explain _to my face_ exactly how every dead civilian was allowed to die tonight, understood?"

"Sir!" The man set off at a sprint.

"And you!" Without warning, the big man who was by now obviously Seto Koribu, chief of the Peacekeepers, whirled on Neji and Choji. "Leaf shinobi! Who's behind all this?"

Neji blinked. "There is strong evidence pointing to Gapol the shipping magnate."

Almost before he could finish, the burly man let off such a long, colorful, and varied stream of profanity that by the time he finally broke off for breath Choji felt compelled to clap. There was the barest hint of a smirk before Koribu roared again. "Well? What are you standing around for? Make yourselves useful and help the town, or get out of it!" He turned and stormed off, popping his knuckles. "I've got somewhere to be…"

* * *

For a long moment Gapol did not respond to Inari's bold declaration, absently picking specks off his suit and adjusting his tie. Finally he fixed the Shipbuilder with a patient look. "You're going to put an end to me, eh? Let me ask you something, Inari. Why would I tell you all this? As I said, you are the king of this town of independent fools. I openly acknowledge you could rally them to oppose me. Having kept up the charade this long, why would I reveal my plans to your face?" His minions chuckled through their knowing smiles. The atmosphere in the room grew tense. "You're the one who brought up the comparison to Gato's reign, so let's roll with that. What happened to the last local hero when the town needed to be broken?" Inari's eyes flashed and his fists clenched. Gesturing casually, Gapol sat back and addressed his men, "Try not to get too much blood on the carpet." They started around the desk, sword and knife in hand.

"No!" screamed Kichita, throwing herself in front of Inari. With a strangled cry, Hari flew at the swordsman, clawing his face and attempting to wrest his weapon with panicked strength. When Inari overcame his shock he tried to help him, but he couldn't get past his wife, who was trying to thrust him out the door with equal desperation and force.

"Kichita! Let me go!" he shouted.

"You have to get out!" she cried in response. "Go! Escape!"

Harimatsu was barely recognizable, taking full advantage of his usually awkward size to overpower the stunned thug and press him off balance. When he finally succeeded in tearing the sword from the man's grasp, Hari himself paused and blinked in dumbfounded surprise.

Gapol's second minion took this opportunity to knife him in the back.

"No!" shouted Shipbuilder and wife together. Hari crumpled immediately, seeming to shrink back from his heroic stature as he fell into a shivering, bleeding heap.

Gapol sniffed. "Thank you Wong." He fixed his bodyguard with a measuring stare. "You _are_ a professional, right?" The mercenary jerked his head once as he sullenly reclaimed his weapon. "You're sure?" The man growled and gave Hari a whimper-inducing kick. Gapol's expression turned to an icy smile. "Well, you lost to the mouse. Think you can handle the shrew?"

Kichita bristled. Inari had almost succeeded in shoving her aside, but now she became an immovable presence shielding her much taller husband with her tiny frame.

Some combination of embarrassed, frustrated and enraged, Inari opened his mouth to speak but another voice cut across him.

"How about the hound? _**Fang Over Fang!**_" The door to the office exploded into splinters and a whirling, slashing form swept around Inari and Kichita. The minions were blasted into the corners, bleeding from several fresh gashes. When the dervish landed on the expensive desk and smashed it to bits Gapol yelped and tipped backward in his lavish chair, dumping him unceremoniously on his seat.

Kiba gave him a toothy grin. "The hound smells a rat."

"Leaf ninja?" spluttered Gapol, scrambling backwards. "How? You should be- where are my-"

"You honestly thought three Rain could keep seven Leaf including the Hokage occupied?" Kiba snorted. "You know I actually do believe your goon told you that. I'd get your money back if I were you." He turned back to Inari and Kichita, who were tending to Harimatsu. "Sorry I'm late. Ran into some raiders trying to have too much fun with the local ladies." He raised his voice. "You really ought to teach your boys better manners, you know."

Gapol, who had taken the opportunity to dash to is bolthole, was denied the chance to respond when a snarling beast much larger than him burst out of it and pinned him to the ground. After giving the magnate a proper growl, Akamaru turned to his partner and huffed indignantly.

Kiba held up his hands. "You're right, you're right, _eight_ Leaf shinobi. I guess I wasn't counting the kid yet."

The great hound sniffed, mollified, and then went right back to snarling at Gapol, who was too terrified to move.

Kiba knelt down next the civilians. Kichita evidently knew enough first aid to keep pressure on Hari's wound, using the silk from her basket to staunch the bleeding. He gingerly moved her hands aside long enough to examine the damage. He grunted. "Looks worse than it is," he said slowly.

"Well that's good," replied Kichita, face as ashen as her knuckles, "because it looks terrifying."

"Will he make it?" asked a grim Inari, trying to keep his voice low.

"Alright, nobody move!" barked a new voice at the hole that had been a door.

Kiba immediately moved, setting his head into his palm. "You've got to be kidding me. You actually came in anyway? I'm _right here_ guys…"

"Right where we can see you," crowed Ruzo the small-time thug, his brothers crowded behind him. None of them looked their best; Ruzo bore a long, thin scab crisscrossing with other cuts that would leave an ugly scar meandering across his cheek, nose and chin; Jibi's face was scalded and covered in welts, his hair withered and ragged-looking, and he shook uncontrollably; Shu had a swelling lump on his head and looked dazed and overheated, but otherwise unharmed. "Gapol comes with us," continued Ruzo eagerly, "or we blow you all to bits!" He brandished a lit match dangerously near the fuse of the grapefruit-sized bomb in his hand.

Akamaru tilted his head in mild bewilderment. Kiba just stared at the thugs for a moment. "…Are you being serious right now?" he said flatly. A hint of hesitation crept into Ruzo's cocky expression.

And then the secretary's chair hit Shu in the back of the head. He pitched forward into his brothers, knocking the bomb and match from Ruzo's hands. A flying shuriken casually extinguished the match, but then Kiba opted to sit back and watch when Inari surged into a charge. With a right cross that seemed to come from a mile away, the Shipbuilder caught Ruzo squarely on the nose, sending him skidding across the nice floor. With a shriek of alarm, Jibi turned to make an escape… and ran squarely into a thickset, brawny middle-aged man who immediately spun him back around and dropped him into a headlock.

"Inari," said the big man. It was more a gruff acknowledgement than a greeting.

"Seto," answered Inari in kind. "I heard there was an attack on the Peacekeeper HQ. I'm glad to see you're alright."

"There was. I am. Four officers aren't. There's hell to pay." Koribu punched Jibi with his free hand, ending his struggles to escape. He threw a glance over Inari's shoulder. His mouth worked like it was chewing something bitter. "…Looks like I was late on the draw, though," he said thickly, almost gagging on the words.

Inari blinked. "No," he said, softening, "I was reckless. I thought I'd handle this myself, and Hari paid the price for my overconfidence."

Koribu regarded him with the look of a man reexamining something old and familiar.

"Is this really the time for that?" cried Kichita. "We need to get Hari to the hospital!"

At that moment Harimatsu stirred. "Inari!" he said with a sudden jolt, before Kichita restrained him.

The Shipbuilder hurried around to his field of vision. "I'm right here Hari. I'm fine."

The wounded man darted between Inari's face and Kichita's, both fixing him with brave smiles. He seemed to grow confused until he craned his head enough to catch sight of Kiba, who had taken over dressing the wound. "You _did_ find them," he said, sagging in relief.

When the shinobi quirked an eyebrow, Inari glanced back at his friend and posed, "Find what?"

"The clues I left." Hari winced a little, but it seemed to be from the dressing; for once he looked completely relaxed, and he spoke without stammering. "The discarded page of the manifest, the silk caught in the trap door, the time and place of the meeting, all of it."

"Hari, you-?" breathed an astonished-sounding Kichita.

He gave her a sheepish little smile. "I tried to hide them where I thought only a ninja could find them."

"To keep Gapol's men from finding out?" asked Kiba.

This time Hari did hesitate. "Um, actually, it was, uh, it was to keep Inari from finding them," he said, throwing nervous glances at the man in question.

"Me?" asked Inari, caught by surprise. "Why?"

"To keep you from doing exactly what you did," Kichita explained. "Gapol tried to _kill_ you, Inari!" She turned her scolding-mother tone on their friend. "And he would have killed you if he even suspected we were selling him out, Hari! Why didn't you tell me?"

When Harimatsu tried and failed to get the words out, Kiba answered for him. "So he'd take the fall alone if he was discovered," he said, sounding impressed.

The harbormaster blushed. "I-I just really didn't think that would happen." He smiled at Kichita again. "You thought they'd be too busy to notice our problems, but I knew; the Leaf Ninja are heroes. I even had one c-come and q-q-question m-me…" The blood had drained right back out of his face, and his voice trailed off as a wave of shivers overtook him. When they finally subsided, he sounded sleepy as he finished, still grinning, "…It was cool…"

Kiba cleared his throat. "All right chatterbox, now it really is time for you to find your hospital bed." He pulled something from a pouch and held it up close where the young man could see it. "And since you're such a fan, you get to try out one of these."

"What's that?" asked Inari, watching Hari closely.

"Think of it as all the anesthetic potential of a long night of drinking in one little pill," the ninja explained. "It'll dull the pain, slow his body processes," he smirked, "and he might be a little loopy when he wakes up."

Harimatsu Migorigi, whose big name seemed to fit him much better, took the pill with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. When his breathing slowed to a deep, regular rhythm, Kichita shivered and leaned against Inari. "He is going to be alright, isn't he?"

"Looks like he fell forward with the knife as it hit him," Kiba said. "Probably completely by accident, but he saved his own life. He still needs to see a surgeon, but that pill gave him plenty of time to do that."

"I take it you and he are _not_ carrying on together then?" piped in Koribu. The grizzled Peacekeeper had hogtied Ruzo's gang and the other two minions with their own belts and piled them all on top of Gapol, who had long since passed out under the fear and weight of a horse-sized dog sitting on him. Now he stood watching and idly scratching said hound's ear.

Kichita looked appalled. "Absolutely not! Where did you even hear such a thing?"

Kiba coughed. Koribu muttered some expletive about 'office gossips' before saying aloud, "If you stay with the scumbags I'll take him, make sure he gets treated." Akamaru _arf_ed and trotted forward, crouching to offer his back.

Inari shook his head. "I have to get back out there, rally the townspeople-"

But Kichita seized his arm. "Not tonight, Inari. Please? Just this once, let Seto handle it."

The Shipbuilder hesitated, glancing between the stares of the indifferent Peacekeeper and the pleading wife. He deflated. "…All right."

They settled Hari comfortably on Akamaru. "I'm going to stay and keep an eye on these two. See you soon, partner," said Kiba, ruffling the fur on his head, and then they were off.

Left alone save the ninja, Inari glanced around at the pile of felons and the destroyed office before firmly extricating himself from his wife and facing her. "Okay Kich, I'm staying out of it, but in return I want to hear what you've really been up to, and I want to hear it from you."

Kiba seized the opportunity to take a long step back.

Kichita fidgeted, took a deep breath. "You've always been a hero, Inari. Strong but kind, giving more than you ever ask for yourself; it's what I love about you. But you never think of your own safety, either. It was fine for a while, at first, when we were still a small town…" She grimaced. "…But then you came home with a broken arm one day."

"That was just a misunderstanding."

"I know, and I believe you. But it did remind me that you are mortal …that I could lose you." She took a moment before continuing. "So I started paying more attention. I counted the days you had new bruises and bandages. I talked to Hyo about my concern, and he concurred."

Inari rocked back on his heels. "You're the reason the Peacekeepers-"

"He said he'd already been planning them," she said quickly, "but we did reinforce each other." Biting her lip, she continued, "And then when we were pirated the first time -do you remember that first brutal attack on one of your ships?"

"The _only_ one," Inari said reflexively. Then he caught himself, and his mouth twisted. "…Well, now I suppose it was just the only obvious one."

"Your grandfather said it looked more like an attack than a raid. I panicked when you insisted on going with the next shipment."

Her husband nodded slowly. "I didn't go because you told me you thought you were pregnant."

She pinked a little. "A few days after that, I was passing a tavern when I overheard Ruzo bragging about something to his brothers and followers. You and the militia had just shut him down again the week before, and he was saying something about a chance to get even. Quietly, I paid for more of his drinks until he let it slip." She swallowed. "He said someone had put a hit on you, Inari."

"Ruzo's all talk and tall tales, even when he's sober," said the Shipbuilder slowly, but his eyes had widened and he listened attentively.

Kichita nodded. "Nobody would have believed me, and I couldn't be sure. I didn't want to believe it myself. But I could only think of one person who might do that to you." She shivered. "I've never liked Gapol. He always set my skin crawling, even when he was working for us. So I went to Hari and told him everything. I had to bully him a little," she said guiltily, "but eventually he agreed to go see Gapol with me." She closed her eyes. "Thank the Waves he was there. Gapol never actually admitted to anything with all of his doublespeak and word twisting, but he _implied_ that he would force whoever put the hit out to call it off if I…" Another shudder took her, and she threw a hateful glance over her shoulder at the unconscious magnate. Inari bristled suddenly but remained silent. "I could never accept his offer, and I think I angered him. If I'd been alone… but then Hari spoke up and offered his own means of compensation." She fell silent and stared at the floor.

"It's been you two robbing my shipments," Inari said softly.

His wife nodded. "We would siphon portions of your product and deliver them to Gapol. Weaken you and line his pockets. Turning his competition into a source of revenue would be much more profitable in the long run than just cutting it out at once. Gapol was intrigued." The words sounded like bitter bile in her mouth.

"Why didn't you tell me?" pressed Inari. "Even without proof, I would have had to believe the two of you together."

"Gapol claimed that more skilled assassins than Ruzo would be coming to claim the hit unless it was recalled immediately, and that the money for it would never be traced to him. He also said he had connections in all the offices that could do anything about it, so he'd know if we said anything." Kichita shifted helplessly, as if still struggling against inescapable clutches. "And then we found out the mercenaries we'd hired to 'guard' our shipments were on his payroll when he threatened me with Hari's life at sea, and Hari with my well-being on land if he suspected either of us were thinking about reconsidering. When he started demanding bigger portions of your goods, we held him off a couple times by threatening to send to the Leaf Village," she glanced at Kiba and grimaced, "but then he started implying that he had shinobi here already, and they could act well before the Leaf got here."

Inari blinked. "It was a gradually tightening noose."

"Leaf ninja arriving here on their own accord were the miracle we needed to break free. Hari saw that before I did." Kichita blinked too, fighting back tears. "…I never cared about the money, Inari. I didn't marry you for your power, or a life of luxury. I fought you, even as I stole from you, because I was petrified of what would happen when I couldn't pay off the reaper any more."

The mighty Shipbuilder sagged with the ponderously slow movements of a man gradually buckling under the enormous weight of realization. "…All this time, the two of you have been saving my life. And I had the gall to suspect the worst of you. Even Hyo was fighting me to save me. If I had backed him at all, given the Peacekeepers the time of day instead of laughing at him and them, we wouldn't even have needed to be rescued." His shoulders slumped under a final blow. "And now he's dead for my conceit and blindness. I really am naïve."

Kichita drew in a deep breath and took his hands. "Inari, you've never given yourself a thought before others, and you're not going to help Hyo or Hari by starting now, not like that. We did what we did because you are worth preserving; the town and all of us are going to need your two arms now more than ever. So if you want to honor their sacrifices, then build something with what's been left to you. You can't carry the whole weight of the town by yourself any more, but you can shape it and uplift it, because you are still a hero and a leader. And Seto, Hari and I will be here to help you bear the load." She flushed and released him, kneeling at his feet. She folded her hands and bowed her head. "I-if you'll have me, that is. If you'll forgive me."

For a moment, Inari stared at her. Then he fell to his own knees, seized her into his strong arms and held her tight, and the two of them wept.

At the destroyed door of the office, Kiba turned away to give them their privacy, though he didn't bother to force down his soft smile. Even so, he kept his guard up. He'd protect Inari because Naruto had asked him to, but what bothered him was that he had not expected to be the first one here.

Where was the knucklehead? Or the kid for that matter? Kiba knew there were Rain out there to deal with, but more to the point he remembered the mysterious encounter he'd had on the roof of this very building and shifted uneasily.

He had the feeling this evening wasn't over yet.

* * *

(end)

* * *

Originally I had planned to play up the mystery of this story arc a lot more. I'd intended to leave more question about who was really responsible and write it in such a way that Hyo and Koribu might've seemed just as suspicious as Gapol, though the ending was always going to be the same. Ultimately, I cut out most of that whodunnit due to simple impatience; I've spent such a frustratingly long time writing these short chapters that at this point I'm just eager to wrap it up in a hurry and move on to the next arc. Hopefully I still managed to catch a few people by surprise with Hari and Kichita though. For those of you who were so convinced they were evil last chapter -Kichita in particular suffered in reviews- go back and reread her 'secret rendezvous' with Hari and their meeting with Gapol; I was very careful to try and word it all in such a way that Konohamaru's conclusion seemed logical, but that context would paint in a whole new way. I'm eager to hear how well I succeeded. ; )

I'd also intended to wrap up the Land of Waves this chapter, but then I hit 10 pages and I still had all of Konohamaru's fight and Naruto's unknown lead to cover, among a few other things. Sorry to keep you hanging a little longer, but I figured I'd seize the convenient chapter break. On the positive side, I'm quite certain there's only one chapter left of this arc, it's action-packed, and that always seems to write faster for me. In the meantime, as always, please review!

For the sake of thoroughness, let me repost my standing offer one more time:  
**-I'm going to guarantee at least a page of written progress every week in which somebody asks me about it. I'll end chapters where I feel they should break, but in general I try not to stray too far from 10 pages per update. It's my hope that forcing myself into even an easy routine will help me break out of my writing slump. So there you have it. Drop me a line even as simple as "Hey, how's it coming?" and I will write another page before the end of the week. If you want the next chapter to update sooner, ask me about it. For anyone who does, I'll even send back a small sample of the page I wrote that week. (If you'd rather wait and get it all with the update, be sure to tell me so.) Just keep in mind that whatever I send might be subject to revision before the final product!**

Until next time, though I hope to hear from you sooner,

~ArcTheJedi


	8. Land of Waves: Encounter

Phew. Turns out a semester of writing class that demands excessive amounts of non-fanfiction original writing doesn't leave a lot of spare time for said fanfiction writing. Still, I think I made more efficient progress on this chapter when I did manage to sit down with it _except for the last three pages that fought me to the death for some reason._

To **D'n'A000**, I got your review ten days ago and decided to hold off on replying to it because I was just going to update first and be all 'You have excellent timing dude here's that next bit you were talking about' and it would have sly and cool and stuff, but then my chapter caught on to my shenanigans and was like "NOPE, _too stylish for this author lolz!_"

. -_-

As usual, I appreciate everyone writing in to check up on me and leave me their thoughts, in particular Mathemagician93 and TimeShifter for their dogged perseverance. Here's my standing offer again (however, note that Christmas week might be an exception given the sheer amount of distraction):

-I'm going to guarantee at least a page of written progress every week in which somebody asks me about it. I'll end chapters where I feel they should break, but in general I try not to stray too far from 10 pages per update. It's my hope that forcing myself into even an easy routine will help me break out of my writing slump. So there you have it. Drop me a line even as simple as "Hey, how's it coming?" and I will write another page before the end of the week. If you want the next chapter to update sooner, ask me about it. For anyone who does, I'll even send back a small sample of the page I wrote that week. (If you'd rather wait and get it all with the update, be sure to tell me so.) Just keep in mind that whatever I send might be subject to revision before the final product! I'm sorry to be so lazy an author, but since I just can't seem to kick myself along I'm going to hand you all some boots. Deal?

**Disclaimer: I own even less stuff than usual! If this keeps up, I'm going to go into, like, _negative_ ownership of stuff. Oh, wait, that's called debt, and I already have that...**

* * *

The sterile scent had led Naruto to the door of an unassuming house, indistinguishable from every other building in the lane. The sounds of crisis had dropped away sharply as he came until there was only quiet and stillness under the normal light of the regularly spaced lanterns. Even the fog had cleared from the area. For this neighborhood, at least, it was just another average night.

It wasn't a question of whether a trap was waiting for him, Naruto figured, only when it would be sprung, and since he'd been lured here he didn't think it would matter where he chose to enter. When a cautious try at the door found it unlocked, he slid it open the rest of the way slowly and carefully, tensed to leap out of the way. The odor faded again, but this time Naruto refused to let it goad him into rushing.

No clicking sounds of trip wires. No hissing of paper tags. Nothing in sight in the deserted entryway beyond, except two pairs of sandals neatly placed by the door. Taking a moment to close his eyes and verify with his other senses that nothing was amiss, Naruto stepped through, brushing the doorframe with one hand as he did. Immediately he did hear something far off, but it was the one sound he had not been expecting:

A little girl's laugh.

* * *

In retrospect, Konohamaru realized, pissing off this Oboro guy into a frenzied rage may not have been the best idea. After all, knowing which enemy was the real one and knowing where he was didn't help much when there were 30-odd obvious clones swarming him at every turn.

On the other hand, the Rain was in _such_ lather that none of them were coordinated or attacking methodically. Juking a slashing claw, he stabbed a pair of senbon into the wrist and turned, continuing the blow's momentum into a spin. Three more blades pierced his impromptu shield before he stabbed his captured limb into the chest of another clone. Dropping flat to avoid a hail of shuriken, he swept his legs out and tripped another doppelganger, catching its jacket as he rose and flinging it into another wave.

Another clone loomed over him suddenly, trying to seize him in a bear hug. He slammed a fist with shuriken between the knuckles into its chest and reduced it to a spray of water, but in its wake he felt something wrap around his back foot. Immediately he twisted and sank the shuriken precisely through the links of the grappling claw, pinning it to the ground before it could tear at his leg. He ducked on instinct, and another set of claws scraped along the neck guard of his flak jacket. He caught the following arm and crouched, flipping his attacker into the clone attached to his shackle.

He spun back to face the next wave, but when his foot remained stuck fast Konohamaru realized too late the danger of being repeatedly soaked with water in this fight. In a heartbeat the ice had shot up his legs and encased him completely, leaving a startled look of surprise frozen on his face.

The next Rain clone to approach promptly caved in the skull of the newly made statue, straight through the headband.

* * *

The father of two froze, ears straining, but the sound had faded the same heartbeat he heard it. Ahead the entry room opened into a hallway leading out of sight to the left and right, and a large set of sliding doors opposite the entrance, probably leading into a study. Closing the door carefully behind him, he glided forward to the right corner and peered around the left. Through the darkness he could see to where the hall turned the next corner past another doorway in that direction. There was a stand bearing a vase of fresh flowers beneath a painting, and though all the lamps he could see were extinguished, they all showed signs of use. What had looked like an average home from the outside continued to look like one from the inside. A glance over his shoulder showed more of the same down the hall's other end, but just as he was turning away motion caught his eye. He fixated on it just fast enough to see a flash of blond and a child's foot disappearing around the bend. He took a step in pursuit.

"Whatcha doing?"

Naruto whirled back toward the entrance, but the door was still closed and the area was cleanly exposed; the owner of the curious voice was nowhere to be seen. After a moment he turned back to the hall, only to see that where the entrance had been the wall now continued seamlessly to the corner. He gave the area a few quiet, probing raps. Nothing to suggest a trap door or false covering. He gathered some chakra, focused and whispered _**"Release"**_ but wasn't surprised when nothing happened. Sniff, sniff… the sterile non-odor had vanished. All that remained were the usual scents of a normal home: well-used wood, the flowers from the vase, faint traces of candles both scented and functional…

"No no no, give it back!"

For the second time Naruto spun around, seeking the toddler's voice. His eyes fell on a pair of silhouettes beyond the sliding study doors. Both very small, the taller one seemed to be dangling something over the shorter, who was making frantic but futile jumps to claim it.

"Daddy! Make him stop!"

Naruto managed to restrain himself enough to open the doors carefully. As he expected, there was no one in the room beyond. He had only a glance at the sparse den with a simple desk and plain wooden chair and a bookcase topped by a model ship before more sounds came drifting through the door opposite, left open just a crack.

"~Gon-na get you~!" A little girl's shrieking giggle answered the boy's singsong threat, and the pounding of little feet faded into the distance.

Naruto grit his teeth. They were mocking him, goading him on with his own children's voices. Through the next door was another hallway, somehow even more featureless than the first. Lights issued from somewhere he could not see, but only enough to throw the dim atmosphere into flickering confusion. To his right he heard the sounds of a family having dinner.

"…aww, why can't we have ramen again?..."

To his left a very small shadow issued around the corner. "~Can't find me, Daddy~…" Another girly giggle faded away with the dissolving silhouette when he took a step in that direction.

* * *

A broken cinder block tumbled from the shattered pieces of the man-shaped shell of ice. Oboro saw the growing shadow and threw himself forward. His two bodyguard clones leapt up to intercept the sudden blast of fire; a moment later the resulting steam billowed as Konohamaru landed, hissing in frustration himself; so had ended every attempt to close with his enemy so far. Oboro was already retreating behind his line of clones who were already reorienting on the Leaf's new position.

How was the Rain creating so many? It was true that Water Clones took very little chakra for a clone jutsu, but after the hundreds he'd generated he should still have been at least a little drained. Just then Konohamaru noticed subtle motion in the steam, movement he would have missed in the dwindling fog without his goggles. He watched as the vapor flowed over toward the other ninja and condensed on his frame; a moment later two more clones sprang up beside him.

Konohamaru rocked back on his heels. He wasn't tiring, because he wasn't making new clones! Instead of losing all the energy each time a clone died, Oboro simply kept control of the chakra-filled water and reformed it.

Armed with this revelation, the young Leaf decided to gamble. Before the attack of the clones could resume, he knelt and wove through a set of hand signs before slapping a palm to the ground.

_**Earth Style: Dark Swamp Jutsu!**_

The various piles of wood and cement and cinder sagged and toppled as the ground in the plaza turned to deep, grasping mud.

Oboro tensed, but relaxed when he saw that the jutsu would not reach him. "Feeble, Leaf brat," he sneered. "Did you really think you could slow down _Water_ Clones with a swamp? I assure you, it's just the opposite." At these words the doppelgangers who had been running towards Konohamaru put on bursts of even greater speed, gliding along the surface of the mud. They made wide looping turns at a blurring pace as they came, shuffling at random to present the Leaf with an ominous wall of motion; the first attack could come from anywhere.

Konohamaru smirked, and jumped. A Water Clone dove through the air under him from behind. There were two more back there, trying to drive him into his own swamp where he would be ensnared and helpless before the onslaught.

To save Oboro the trouble, he rode the back of the clone into it on his own.

When his impromptu mount began to speed out from under him, Konohamaru dropped a senbon trailing a ninja tag into the mud, and stabbed the kunai bearing the tag's match and the thread connecting them into the clone's back. As he did so he flipped away, catching the next attacker's arms and twirling himself into crouch on its shoulders. He stabbed the kunai into its 'face' first this time, tossing the tagged senbon into the muck as he leapt to the next attacker to repeat the process.

"What the- what are you doing?!" demanded Oboro.

"Don't really know," answered Konohamaru from a sinking wood pile, banking a kunai thread off a clone's torso into its companion. It was technically an honest answer. Designed to shunt chakra one-way from tag to tag, these particular ninja seals were intended as a delivery mechanism for activating the user's own traps; he had no idea what they would do used this way. "But I'm guessing either poisoning your water supply or binding your clones' chakra to my swamp's." By now there were a lot of gleaming threads and disgusting _squish_-splashes, and a lot fewer clones.

"No!" The mud at the Rain's feet surged up out at him, dragged along by a clone's returning water. When Oboro jumped back, the spray sucked itself back into the swamp and began to churn. The next instant the Rain reversed direction and sprang to the edge of the murk, weaving through hand signs even as the mud reached for him again. He might have shouted the name of the jutsu if he weren't howling in rage; whatever it was, the mud froze solid beneath his palm, and the frigid cold flashed over the plaza. Mud, wood, cinder blocks, Water Clones, everything was coated with a shell of ice; Konohamaru escaped by lassoing a wall-mounted sign with his scarf.

"Finally," breathed the young Leaf. "Now maybe we can fight ninja to n-" And then Oboro was on him, attempting to claw out his guts.

* * *

"_~One lil' ninja got lost in the woods…"_ The little girl's voice had taken to singing, always sounding as if she were right around the corner.

As Naruto had expected, the dining room had been empty too, though the table had been set for four. The kitchen was vacant too, but something made him linger.

"How come Mom always does the cooking, Dad?"

He resisted the impulse to turn. He saw that the stove had been lit and there were carving knives set out on the counter, but no food to be prepared. He decided that was what had seemed strange, though he didn't quite convince himself.

"_~Sun goin' down, lil' ninja, light goin' out…"_

He shook his head and moved on.

* * *

A few torn threads of his scarf stuck in the gouges torn in the wall as Konohamaru ducked by dropping, but he'd barely landed when a pool of water surged up on the right. Throwing himself reflexively to the left, he realized belatedly that this took him straight toward a pillar of ice. He dropped flat on his back to slide past it just as it erupted in deadly spikes. His nose chilled from a near miss.

Konohamaru ran chakra through his feet to catch the ice, using his momentum to start the roll back upright, and as he did he tore off his goggles. Now that the battlefield had been frozen, the infrared vision was painting everything but his opponent in the same dark shades. Oboro might have a couple clones available yet, but dealing with them was preferable to being blind to his surroundings.

No sooner had the goggles come off when another slashing claw appeared on the left. He shied out of its path only to spot a trio of kunai oncoming. He flattened his profile and brandished his own knife to block them -but an instant later they vanished, and the projectiles lanced past him, leaving long gashes in his arm and jacket.

Mind racing and feet stumbling, Konohamaru saw Oboro bearing down on him again and moved to sidestep him, but caught himself. _A ninja acting on reflex is being maneuvered_, he reminded himself. Because he lingered he saw the kunai that had grazed him stuck fast in a frozen woodpile -in front of him.

Oboro was about to strike him head-to-head. On instinct, Konohamaru charged toward him and threw a shuriken -over his own shoulder. Ahead, the Rain ducked… as the shuriken flew over his head.

With a surge of satisfaction, Konohamaru stopped cold and rounded on his heel, cupped hand ready to gather chakra. But his foe had aborted his charge as well, already sliding away into hiding.

Rather than continue to risk his clones, Oboro had liquidated his usual pair of bodyguards, literally. Using the ice-covered mounds like a projection screen, he was manipulating the water into casting reflections of his movements, masking his angle of attack and appearing to strike relentlessly from everywhere. It was a reverse of his previous strategy of overwhelming by sheer numbers and attrition, and it had almost taken Konohamaru in.

But if the Rain wanted to play at misdirection, the Leaf would be happy to oblige.

Ignoring the approach of Oboro's next attack, Konohamaru assumed the focus stance and gathered chakra. _**"Ninja Art…"**_ he whispered. _**"…Leaf Maelstrom!"**_ A blast of wind roared to life around him, and suddenly the plaza, nearly free of the fog and buried under ice, was shrouded anew under a roiling curtain of leaves. The light from a single, miraculously surviving lantern shone into the chaos, which effortlessly scattered and confounded it in a dance of green and shadows. Into such obscurity the two shinobi waded and stalked each other.

* * *

"_~Hide, lil' ninja! Hide in the bush…"_

Every room had been much like the last: still, neat and orderly, domestic and unremarkable, and utterly void of life. No unusual scents; no sign yet of the one that had led him here. And yet, like the disembodied toddler's haunting refrain, there was something else persistent and nagging at him as he explored. He had investigated the entire ground floor and found nothing, even at that apparent false wall at the entrance. On his way back to the stairs he'd found near the kitchen Naruto passed through the study again.

Something was different. The desk was missing, and the chair was bigger than he remembered, bulky and cushioned, and the change captured his attention. He stared at it for a long moment before it came to him.

"Hey Dad? Where're _your_ mom and dad?"

It was the chair from his own den, where he had sat down and picked up his young son to tell him of the amazing courage and love of the boy's grandparents. It was the place where Naruto had shared the deep secret of his own life, the challenges he'd overcome and the man he'd grown to be. It was in a room like this one… no, _identical_ to this one, where he had passed the dreams and wishes of many to the next generation.

That was it; that was what had been bothering him. He realized now he'd started to recognize these rooms from his own clan complex. They were unused, vacant rooms -the clan hall was still much too extensive for the single family living in it- but rooms that had been burned into his memory the first time he toured his first real home. He still remembered the _new_ smell, the sturdy and strong feel of the hand-crafted furniture under his hands.

This place had even been littered with familiar items: the comfy chair, a gift from Granny Tsunade; Hinata's favorite vase, out in the hallway; he saw that the model ship on the bookcase had been replaced by a lumpy, roughly-spherical blob of clay -Keidyan's first 'work of art'.

"Dad! Dad, come look!"

When he caught himself wondering whether he'd actually just heard those words or only recalled them, he shook himself and gathered chakra. _**"Release!"**_

Nothing. The chair remained. His little girl's voice sang on.

"_~Don't let the mean old monsters find you…"_

* * *

Konohamaru waited patiently. There, to the left, a gleam of metal; but the leaves stirred behind him, to the right. Treading silently but swiftly, he scaled the nearby frozen column and surveyed the disturbance, but all he saw was a fresh pool sliding away. A clawed hand grew out of the ninja's icy perch and seized an ankle, but the grip crumbled when the leg dissolved into leaves. Senbon needles darted through the maelstrom, seeking the hand, but Oboro had already slid around to the far side. The terrain was Oboro's ally, the atmosphere Konohamaru's. Oboro melded with the ice, allowing him unnatural speed and mobility. Konohamaru closed his eyes, moving to the instructions of the whispering leaves, his cloak and shield. After long moments of quiet and stillness, the Rain would strike at a shadow; the Leaf would descend upon him; the Rain would melt away, the ice hiding him and then deceiving for him as he rose to ambush the ambusher; the leaves would stir angrily, slowing his arm and blinding his eyes, while the Leaf would disappear into the confounding shadows; the quiet calm never disturbed, the hunt would resume.

This game of deadly tag continued for several minutes, with neither ninja caught unaware nor gaining the upper hand. Finally Konohamaru knelt and waited. When the leaves warned him, he did not escape as he had been but turned and leapt to meet Oboro's attack. His hands were too wide and empty, and as he seemed to be rushing to impale himself on Oboro's claws, the Rain was slowed a fraction by surprise. When his weapon stopped short he realized that Konohamaru was not unarmed; the Leaf had caught his blades in an elaborate weave of ninja thread. When he tried to pull back and melt away, he saw that the thread had been lined with chakra and fashioned into an improvised seal, not only ensnaring his arm but denying his escape. He would have slashed the trap with the kunai in his other hand, but the process of realization had been too slow; the instant Konohamaru caught Oboro he had fallen backward, pulling the Rain along. Planting a foot in his midsection, Konohamaru used the momentum to launch his enemy through the air, releasing the threads as he did.

Konohamaru had been subtly maneuvering the fight to the edge of the plaza; Oboro landed at the mouth of one of its joining streets, outside of the ice field and the maelstrom. "Fool! Blasted child!" he screamed, finally breaking the silence. "Do you think you are playing with me?!" As if in answer, the writhing leaves ceased their chaos and blasted toward him en masse.

"_**Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"**_ From within a starburst of fireballs flared out, intersecting precisely with every ballistic leaf, licking at their edges and causing them to spray sparks as they rushed the Rain.

Unimpressed, Oboro wove through some hand signs and loosed his response: _**"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"**_ What little remained of the fog in the area coalesced with his personal water supply into a snarling beast that slammed into the oncoming storm, snuffing the fires and scattering the leaves. From out of their shadows, however, a hail of shuriken and kunai emerged; superheated by the flames, the darts seared through the water dragon unimpeded, though their heat was spent. Without enough time to recall any of his water, the Rain quickly knelt and brandished his massive claws. He activated a hidden mechanism that caused plates to shift and unfold, turning it into a temporary shield. He suffered a minor graze or two, but nearly all of the projectiles bounced harmlessly off or missed entirely. Several of them disappeared in puffs of clone smoke after they rebounded.

The moment the hail passed, Oboro surged back to his feet, collapsing his weapon back into claws. Konohamaru stood waiting in the clearing steam and smoke, a cocky smirk on his face. His scarf rippled away from the shimmering, spiraling ball of energy in his hand. Upon seeing the Rasengan Oboro grew visibly disturbed, eyes twitching and hooked fingers clenching in manic spasms. When the Leaf burst forward, the Rain recalled all the steam and water he could reach, gathering all his chakra for a rage-fueled assault.

Behind him, one of the discarded shuriken released a puff of smoke that was much too large for it. Before the wisp had time to extinguish, the Konohamaru within loosed a spray of senbon that stabbed into Oboro's arms; suddenly nerveless, the limbs dropped uselessly to his sides. Before he could recover from his shock, the ambushing Leaf vaulted forward and kicked his heels out from under him.

"_**Na-!"**_

The attacker danced back a step and caught the falling victim with a headbutt between the shoulder blades.

"_**-ru-!"**_

From the pile of burnt and soaked leaves in front of them another Konohamaru erupted, planting a leaping left uppercut to the Rain's chin, lifting him into the air.

"_**-to-!"**_

The hapless Oboro saw that the original Konohamaru had leapt to meet him. Eyes fixed on the approaching Rasengan, he had just enough time to scream, "No! Not again!"

"_**-Uzumaki Barrage!"**_

The shinobi blasted into the ground, issuing a resounding impact and explosion of dust and dirt as he rebounded and tumbled down the street. A smugly satisfied Leaf ninja landed between his two clones. _**"…Konohamaru Style."**_

* * *

"_~Daddy gonna chase the monsters away…"_

Naruto remembered. It was a lullaby. His little girl had woken sobbing from a nightmare. He'd pulled her close and held her tight, and he'd promised he'd always be there. He wasn't much of a singer. There wasn't much of a tune, and he'd made up the words on the spot. He'd only ever sang it the one time.

Someone else had his baby girl right now, and he wasn't there for her. There were only two people her captors could have learned the song from.

"_~Daddy gonna bring lil' ninja on home…"_

Hidden speakers? Reapplying genjutsu? He decided he didn't really care how they were doing it. Let them spring their trap already, and find out just how smart taunting the Sixth Hokage really was.

"_DAD! HELP!"_

It was loud. It was desperate. It was _real_, and it commanded Naruto's attention like the sudden hiss of a paper bomb. He hesitated for only an instant, and cursed himself for it before tearing through the halls and vaulting the stairs in two leaps. The rug lay not-so-perfectly up here, and a door barely finished closing before Naruto tore it back open. On the other side he found… a nursery. His children's nursery. Early morning light streamed in through the open window, along with the sound of rustling leaves from the Village's trees. And there, across the room, in their beds-

No.

"**ENOUGH!**" Fox chakra flared, burning nearly as hot as his anger through his veins. He felt this false world waver before the onslaught, and in an instant of perfect clarity his surging senses found the telltale non-odor. His hand blazed out and found flesh. The veil dissolved before his eyes, and he saw he held a ninja in the air by his neck.

His foe was dressed in nondescript stealth gear except that it was colored in ugly browns and sickly yellows and greens that looked more like a disease than camouflage. His hood wrapped tightly around his head so that only his eyes were visible. Bolted over his mouth was a metal plate the right size and shape for a shinobi headband, but instead of bearing any emblem the plate was a patchwork of random metal pieces and crisscrossing rivets and welds. He made no attempt to resist as Naruto held him up by the throat, his arms hanging loosely by his side.

"**Where are my kids?"** snarled the Hokage.

_Oh dear._ _Little boy and girl out of bed at this hour? _The man's vocal chords were not vibrating beneath his grip, and his speech was not impaired at all. The words came from inside Naruto's own head; he didn't 'hear' them, so much as just 'perceive' them. _Are you sure they aren't just hiding around the house? _Naruto's piercing glare didn't faze the other ninja, whose eyes held an otherworldly hue and a disinterested listlessness in direct contrast with his patronizing tone. _No? Maybe you should check the Academy._

He had the impression that he heard the bird who sang outside his window every morning, but it was faint and distorted through the violence roaring in his ears. "Your tricks are feeble and worn out. I see right through them," he said with contempt. "Are they here in the Land of Waves?"

_Not there either?_ The words sounded ponderous. _Then they must be out to play. I know; I bet they're visiting the Collector. He loves company._

"The 'Collector', huh? Can't wait to meet him. What did he collect before broken bones and concussions?"

_This and that, collected from all sorts of interesting people and places._ A hint of malevolent glee crept into the voice. _He has so many toys that little children just find a __**scream**__!_

Naruto bristled, and the air around him grew hot from the outpouring of his chakra. His stone-hard grip on the man's throat hardened to iron. **"If you harm one hair on either of their heads there will be no corner of the world where you can hide from me!"**

The voice was yet unaffected by the strangling pressure, and those unnerving eyes continued their dull, unfocused staring. _Perish the thought. The Collector takes good care of his collection. And his company._

Naruto didn't like that particular choice of words. "Where can I find him?"

_Patience, 'Lord Hokage'. The Collector is only just getting to know his guests._ Hizumi's little giggle echoed again, but through the distortion it sounded a lot like crying. _Your formal invitation to join them will come in due time._

Yeah. Because Naruto Uzumaki would be totally content to sit and wait for an invitation. Believe it. He was quickly losing patience with this conversation. "…You left Zetsu's body to point me out this way."

_The Collector believed that meeting some familiar faces would help you while away the time. They were all pleased to see you again… one way or another._

Blood began to seep out around clawed fingernails digging into the man's neck. Naruto's face was grim. "So maybe your corpse will give me another lead, huh?"

At this the voice split into giddy laughter approaching madness as it traced circles around his mind. The shinobi's strange eyes had finally focused on him. _Are you sure you want to do that?_

"Give me a reason not to."

A woman's sudden sharp gasp at the door drew his attention. His eyes shot open when he saw who it was. "Hinata?! What are you doing here?!"

His wife stood in the door and did not answer him. Her hands were pressed firmly over her mouth while tears of horror threatened to stream down her ghostly pale cheeks. Her eyes looked at him with the purest form of terror, and it shook him utterly.

"What…? Hina… why…?"

No, wait, not at him… beyond him. The captive? He turned back-

Keidyan writhed weakly in his grip, his small hands struggling futilely at the hooked fingers mangling his throat. Feeble choking sounds issued between bloodstained teeth, and his face was wet with tears and sweat and quickly turning blue. His eyes began to roll back into his head…

Naruto recoiled so quickly he did not register the wall stopping his retreat. The red light of Fox chakra evaporated as all his rage instantly transformed into something opposite but just as primal. The room plunged into shadows, driven back by a single candle. He clutched his wrist, fighting the impulse to tear the hand off as the blood-stained fingers quivered and twitched.

Hinata was nowhere to be seen, whether she had fled from his atrocity or whether she'd ever been there at all. The illusion was gone, and he saw that he was indeed in a nursery, though not his own. He had slumped over a pile of plush and toys meant for a newborn. The window was open to a chill night that was nearing its end, the drapes lightly brushing a miniature dresser upon which a music box groaned out its last few weak, sad notes and the candle flickered in its holder. The room was painted in bright colors that didn't seem so cheerful in the dim light; just within its reach in the corner a woman was sprawled over the side of an empty crib. She was very still, and even in the gloom Naruto could make out the dry red stains on the fresh wood, wall and ground. Once he realized what he saw he expected the smell to hit him, but instead there was only pristine, disinfected freshness. He shuddered.

Where his son had been a crumpled form lay on the ground, much too small for a human. When Naruto could finally overcome his revulsion and tamp down his rattled nerves, he came forward again to examine it. A child's toy: a ninja doll, complete with flak vest and fabric cutout shuriken and kunai. It wore the standard green of the Leaf Village, in vivid contrast to the real blood all over its neck -a sight he willed himself to ignore. When he turned it over, where he had expected a blank mask he found instead a detailed face, painted with the youthful features of a young man he didn't recognize. More importantly, the headband it wore was authentic shinobi gear. The Village sigil it bore… was not what he would have expected.

The sound of another distant explosion echoed through the window. When he realized the direction of its origin, he shook himself. One second later he was at the house's entrance, pausing only long enough to erase the Flying Thunder Seal on the doorframe, and the next he was on the rooftops, heading straight for the new column of smoke.

* * *

As the Shadow Clones dissipated, Konohamaru staggered. All the high-energy jutsu had winded him. But he kept his feet and moved toward Oboro's crumpled body, trying to disguise his slow gait as a swagger for anyone who might be watching.

Before he could reach his beaten foe, however, a shuriken came spinning out of the waning darkness. No ready weapon in hand, he danced back a step and let the dart bounce past him along the ground.

Two more Rain shinobi dropped to the street next to Oboro. _Oh come on!_ complained Konohamaru inwardly. _What's everyone else doing?_ But then he noticed how battered and harried the newcomers appeared, and he couldn't repress a smirk as he answered his own question. The Rain with one eye covered knelt by the beaten ninja and checked him with the arm he could move.

Konohamaru could feel the hate radiating in palpable waves from the one with the cloth band across both eyes. That was all right, Konohamaru didn't think much of that guy either. He willed more energy into his tired muscles to avenge his embarrassment from this afternoon.

Just as eager for the fight, his foe stalked forward, but his companion the cyclops stopped him. "No, you fool! We need to make good our escape."

"It's just the Leaf brat!" the other argued. "Why not kill him on the way out?"

"I already trashed one Rain hide," Konohamaru retorted hotly, "and both of yours look half-done for me already!"

No-Eyes bristled, while One-Eye gave him a close look. "Boasts like that sound more impressive when you're not swaying on your feet," the latter observed casually. "If only we'd met you first…" He shook his head and addressed his teammate. "It would take too long now, Kagari. We have to leave before the rest catch up to us." With visible effort, the other Rain turned back and caught up their unconscious comrade in a rush.

Adrenaline had nearly restored Konohamaru, and he surged after them. "You're not going anywhere!"

One-Eye hissed in vexation, but just then a roaring _boom_ echoed through the town. _More Rain tricks?_ thought Konohamaru. But the two in front of him shared a look, and though he couldn't read their faces through their masks he got the gut feeling they were just as surprised as he was. "Sounds like you have something more important to attend to," the Rain said. They leapt to the rooftops and out of view.

Konohamaru followed them instinctively, but he hesitated with one foot on the gutter. If the Rain had not set off that detonation, then it could only be the thugs… or their mystery shinobi.

He rolled backward and kicked off in the other direction.

* * *

Dawn was quickly approaching and the last traces of the chakra-induced fog had vanished, which meant Konohamaru had a plain view of the remains of the Great Naruto Bridge. Both frayed ends had not only been shattered by the explosion but melted and warped by the heat, twisting away from the smoking chasm breaching its length. Small crowds of the local villagers were beginning to gather; all were shocked, some to stunned silence, some to outcries of dismay.

The Boss stood with his back turned at the archway. Konohamaru ran over to him. "Boss! What's going on?"

"Nothing," he replied without turning. "Just a parting taunt." Konohamaru followed his upward stare to the Bridge's plaque. The metal hadn't cooled yet, leaving the Leaf Village emblem outlined in glowering red where it had been melted in over the words.

"…The three Rain were in my sights when it happened, and it doesn't seem their style anyway. Our kidnappers?"

"Long gone." Naruto turned his head and from his coat produced something that looked like a child's toy. "But they left us our next clue."

* * *

(End)

* * *

Originally I intended to round out the plot arc this time around, but it just got too long and I got too antsy for an update. There's only a few more details to clear up, so the next chapter will probably be a shorter one.

In the meantime, what did you guys think of the first of the real bad guys? And of Konohamaru's fighting style? I'm eager to hear feedback on this one, because it had a couple of the moments I've been holding in my head since as far back as Trial by Leaves.

Hope to hear from you all soon, though of course given the season enjoy your vacations too! Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays everybody, whichever you prefer.

~ArcTheJedi


	9. Land of Waves: Departure

"Good news, everyone!" I've got my computer back and my writing mojo is recovering; I'm not quite back into my groove yet, but I'm getting there. More good news, we're finally done with the Land of Waves! Unfortunately, I wasn't kidding when I said this was going to be a short update. It's so short in fact that I considered holding off on it until I'd written the next segment, but in the end I decided I'd rather have two short updates quickly than a big one that took more time. Hope it's not a let-down for anyone!

Standing offer:  
-I'm going to guarantee at least a page of written progress every week in which somebody asks me about it. I'll end chapters where I feel they should break, but in general I try not to stray too far from 10 pages per update. It's my hope that forcing myself into even an easy routine will help me break out of my writing slump. So there you have it. Drop me a line even as simple as "Hey, how's it coming?" and I will write another page before the end of the week. If you want the next chapter to update sooner, ask me about it. For anyone who does, I'll even send back a small sample of the page I wrote that week. (If you'd rather wait and get it all with the update, be sure to tell me so.) Just keep in mind that whatever I send might be subject to revision before the final product! Since I just can't seem to kick myself along I'm going to hand you all some boots. Deal?

**Disclaimer: Y'know, since my hard drive died I had most but not all files backed up, it occurs to me that I actually own _even less_ than I did before in terms of recorded written work and such. I didn't think that was possible.**

* * *

Tazuna had been out drinking. When more sober buddies had become aware of the attack on the town, they had quietly barricaded the pub, determined to protect the old Bridgebuilder. When Tazuna eventually caught on, he had insisted with increasing desperation on going out to help. As by then he could not navigate a straight line, a well-meaning friend had 'encouraged' a lapse into unconsciousness.

When he came to the next morning, the first words out of Tazuna's mouth were to ask after Inari and his family. Informed of the destruction to the town and in particular the unmaking of the Bridge, the old man had sat back in stunned silence and quiet thought for several long moments. But then he shook his head as if waking from a trance and declared, "Oh well, I was getting tired of sitting on my hands anyway. We'll just have to remake it bigger and better, that's all."

This had more or less been the reaction of everyone in the Land of Waves. Tears were shed, funerals were held, and families were embraced, neighbors soon after. Then parties were promptly organized to clear debris and tear down buildings that were too damaged. Shops were cleared out to make temporary housing for the new homeless -what few that would not fit in the inns, free of charge. The numerous carpenters in town put off their plans for expansion in favor of reconstruction; many expressed being grateful for the chance to rebuild old projects with their improved experience and skill.

Inari spoke at the service of Mayor Hyo, an event that nearly the whole town took a brief pause to attend. He never said a word about Gapol, but the story had made the rounds and the undertone of anger was palpable. Koribu had made certain to lock the magnate up securely "so the law could kill him properly at the proper time." Inari brought to light the heroic actions of several militia members, the Leaf shinobi (of whom only Kiba and Konohamaru were present, swarmed with admirers) and Harimatsu Migorigi (to many a surprised face), but he championed the relief efforts of the common people for those worst off. He spoke at length of the pride of the town, the bonds forged by tragedy, and the friendship that neighbors should share, and how all of these should weave them together as the late mayor, a newcomer in a Land that had welcomed him, had fervently desired and believed in. He spoke with the rough tongue of an artisan, but with such passion that old and new villagers alike broke out in punctuating cheers of affirmation. When he brought Koribu and Tazuna to the fore and urged support for the Peacekeepers and rebuilding the Bridge, both saw a surge of volunteers. The Leaf ninja left quietly while the townspeople had forgotten their hero worship. Inari had wanted to give the shinobi a much greater public thanks and appreciation, but Naruto had asked him not to.

The Hokage had other things on his mind. There were a couple new craters in Inari's lawn where a few sorely surprised thugs had come looking for the Shipbuilder's family, but otherwise Sakura reported there had been no other incidents. She'd had ample time to examine Hinata that night and the days since, but the results had been… confusing. She wanted to take her back to the Village for a full examination. None of Sakura's present hypotheses would leave Hinata fit for travel; if her instincts were right, Hinata would have to abandon the search to recover. Naruto knew how he would feel if their situation was reversed, but he also knew what his decision had to be.

The morning after the attack Choji had immediately volunteered to take the headband left by the kidnappers back to the Village to verify its origins. The day the rest of the ninja were to depart from the Land of Waves, a message arrived from TenTen. Neji's wife was growing concerned; tensions in the Hyuuga clan were mounting, and she believed his uncle would need his support soon. With little choice, and leery of returning an ailing Hinata into such an atmosphere, Neji and Naruto agreed that the Hyuuga should accompany the kunoichi back to the Village.

It would be some time before anyone would cross the Bridge again, so Inari and his family ferried the shinobi across the bay in the _Waves' Pride_. Grandfather and grandson were animate and optimistic about the future, a sentiment Konohamaru tried to reflect, but the silence between the Uzumakis was deafening; Hinata had not said a word since her symptoms had been discovered, and between ordering her home to wait in uncertainty and the memory of her horrified face watching him strangle the image of their firstborn, Naruto had been unwilling to meet her eyes as well. The passage was an awkward one.

Inari, Kichita, Tsunami, and old Tazuna saw them off on the far shore full of heartfelt gratitude and simple friendship. Tsunami had spent many hours with Hinata over their stay, grieving and sympathizing as only another mother could, and at their parting she had only a last embrace and a bracing smile that spoke more than words could. Cleared of suspicion, Kichita had become fast friends with Sakura, and the two chatted and gossiped like they would see each other again the next week. The Shipbuilder's wife had befriended Akamaru too; she'd smuggled one last doggy treat along for the road, to Kiba's resigned indulgence. Konohamaru was beginning to feel left out until Inari looped an arm around his neck and thanked him for his part in saving their town. Tazuna had been describing in detail the expansive plans he had for the next incarnation of the Great Naruto Bridge, and he extracted a promise from its namesake to bring his family to see it when it was finished. Since it would take a couple months, he suggested they not tell Kei and Zumi right away when they found them, lest the kids be kept in anticipation too long. Cheered by this vote of confidence, Naruto finally managed one of his famous grins and agreed.

Their hosts departed, and it came time to split the party. "Hey, Hinata," called Naruto to her back. "I'll have them back in no time -believe it! So you just focus on getting better, so you can be home with a smile to greet them." She did manage one for him then, a small one, as she turned to look him in the eyes for a brief moment. Neji and Sakura wished them success, and then the three of them departed.

Naruto stood and watched them go with a smile that masked his unease. Finally Kiba made an impatient noise. "Okay, okay, let's get this show on the road already!" he urged. Akamaru punctuated the sentiment and the two of them moved off at a fast pace, leading the way to their next destination. Naruto shook himself and turned to follow.

The authentication results on the headband would meet them on the way. He was sure he knew what the results would be, but he had to remove all doubt.

After all, he was about to confront one of the Leaf Village's supposed allies -and an old personal friend- for betrayal and kidnapping.

* * *

(End)

* * *

The next chapter should be another short one too, an 'in-between' for the story arcs. I'm going to try to get it done by the end of the month, actually, so we'll see how well that works out. In the meantime, have a good one, and I hope to hear from you soon.

~ArcTheJedi


	10. Cutting Class

Okay, here's the new deal. I'm trading regular length for regular timing. At the end of every month from here out, I'm going to upload whatever I've got done. That means chapters are going to be shorter from now on, and some of them might cut off at awkward transitions if I can't help it, but I'm betting that's preferable to waiting forever between updates. I actually had this chapter ready about half a month ago, but I held off so that I could get a headstart. (Shrug) We'll see how this goes.

I'll keep my old standing offer available: ask me about progress and I'll write a page within a week and tell you about it.

**Disclaimer: I might own something someday, but that day is not today, and it won't be anything in this franchise.**

* * *

Iruka-sensei pinched his nose over his scar in that way that Keidyan always thought would be painful. He winced and turned away, but he was relieved because that also meant Sensei was done scolding him.

The teacher sighed. "…Do you trust me, Kei?" he said abruptly. Keidyan blinked. Weird question. He hesitated, nodded. "But not enough to tell me what's really bothering you, huh?" Kei stuck his chin out and said nothing.

He saw Iruka-sensei nodding out of the corner of his eye. "Tell you what," he said, "why don't you and I go out for ramen tonight? Just like your old man and I used to." Eyes going wide, Keidyan rounded on the instructor, but he bit his lip. Sensei caught it and raised a hand. "Nothing about class or lessons or being a ninja. Just some time to hang out. Would you like that?"

Keidyan wasn't sure they really wouldn't talk about school -what else did Sensei know about, after all?- but he did _like_ Iruka-sensei. And the fact that his dad used to do this all the time… He nodded eagerly and put on a big grin.

Sensei looked relieved. "All right, it's a plan then. In the meantime, let's get back to class, huh? Go take your seat, I'll be along in a minute."

Keidyan leapt off the chair and practically sprinted out of Iruka-sensei's office. His ears were still burning from all the lecturing he'd just sat through; he could hardly believe it would end so well. His classroom was just around the corner, and as he ran in the other kids were finishing up their lunches. His stomach grumbled, but he didn't care, it was worth it.

"~Oooh, Keidyan's in trouble again~!" one of them called as soon as he ran in, drawing all of their eyes and stopping him in his tracks. He hid the urge to step back out again under a snotty look and tried to see who had spoken, but couldn't.

In the front row, Shikanami Nara turned a lazy glance at the clock and took another draw at her juice. "You missed all of lunch," she told him, sounding impressed. "That's a new record."

"Who'd want to miss lunch?" a baffled Chogan Akamichi asked her between fistfuls of chips, a dozen empty bags littered around. Kei liked Shikanami and Chogan. They were fun and cool.

"Just Kei, because he's so dumb!" sneered Inoru Nara, who was neither. Several of the other kids snickered and added their own jabs. Keidyan thought of something to shoot back at the blond boy, but he couldn't get himself to say it. He settled for sticking his tongue out and hurrying past him, looking for Zumi. Little sis had been on the edge of waterworks by the time he got back to school; the only way to avoid a crying fit was to promise to share his lunch with her. Hopefully she'd found something to distract her long enough to…

Oh, snot. That Inuzuka girl had her. She was the worst, always the first to laugh at him and knock him down on the playground. She'd moved to the seat next to his again too, even though he'd asked Iruka-sensei to move him away from her twice. Little Hizumi was happily playing with her puppy -Aomaru? Aoimaru? whatever- on the floor between them when he sat down, scooting his chair away from the other girl.

"Hey Loser-maki!" said Ashi with her big pointy smile, dimples in her fang marks. "You're in the doghouse so much maybe you should just move in!"

The other kids weren't watching any more. Kei made an ugly face and said, "Because then I'd have to hang out with more of you _Inuzuka_."

She leaned over, sniffed him, and plugged her nose. "We wouldn't want a loser like you anyway," she said. "Too bad you didn't get away this time- we had loads of fun without you, right Zumi?"

"Yeah!" squealed Zumi in delight as the puppy licked her face some more. She petted the blue stripe over one of his ears. Kei scowled.

"Don't you wish you had a cool big sis instead of a dropout big brother?" Ashi said, smiling bigger. He was pretty sure neither of them knew what 'dropout' meant, just that it wasn't nice.

"Nope!" said the toddler just as happily. "Big brother is the best!" She offered Kei the last scrap of his lunch, a corner of sandwich with doggy slobber on it. His stomach growled, but he grinned and hugged his sister. Inuzuka looked surprised and sad.

Iruka-sensei came in then, closing the door behind him and raising his voice. "All right everyone, time to settle down. We still have a lot to cover today, even without any more interruptions."

"_Yeeaah_," sneered Inoru, "like another of Keidyan's dumb escapes!"

"And that means that it's time for all visitors to leave," continued Sensei. He was looking straight at Hizumi. She pouted and clung to her brother, much to his embarrassment.

Inoru started to say something again, but his sister gave him a sock and told him not to be a drag. "Oww…" the boy whined, rubbing his arm.

"Uh, hey Zumi," said Kei, "Don't you wanna go spend time with Mom and Dad?" She bit her lip, trying to decide. "Dad will take you up on the Mountain if you say please," he added quickly. That did it; Hizumi's eyes got big and she nodded. He thought he heard Ashi say something real quiet, but he didn't care.

Sensei had an eyebrow raised. "So glad we have consent," he said, in that way that made Keidyan think he was telling a joke. "Anyway, Sanaki should be by any minute to…" The door slid open. "Ah, right on-"

Kei didn't know what was happening at first. It was not Sanaki-sensei standing in the doorway, but some big guy in all black. Iruka-sensei looked surprised and… scared? A second later something long, sharp and flexy shot out from the big guy at Sensei, who swung both arms up to block it away, a kunai in one hand. The other hand left something behind when the long thing went back, a few small dots swinging free. Keidyan knew what they were and shouted "Look out!" and clenched his eyes closed, covering Zumi's face.

The flash pellets went off right then, and a lot of the other kids screamed. As soon as they were done, Kei looked again and saw Iruka-sensei knocking the big guy back. The teacher did something with his hands and slapped them against the doorframe. Some black writing and a red light showed up and spread all over the wall. The guy in black punched the light from the other side, but nothing happened. He smiled then, and Kei didn't like it at all.

"Knock those desks down and get behind cover immediately!" Iruka-sensei was shouting. "And no matter what happens, stay hidden!" Hizumi was bawling, and Kei had to push hard to tip the two-person desk by himself. When it went _thud_ he looked over at Ashi, who was really pale and looking around weirdly.

"I-I c-c-can't see! I can't s-see!" she was saying in a squeaky, scared voice. The flash pellets. Keidyan grabbed her by the hand and pulled her off her chair. "Get down!" he yelled.

Right then there was the loudest noise he'd ever heard, and he saw a big chunk of the wall opposite the door fly apart. Ashi screamed and grabbed her ears, Hizumi just screamed, and Keidyan pulled both their heads down, but none of the chunks came near. He heard Iruka-sensei use the only swear word Kei knew. The red light on the other wall disappeared.

There was a lot of noise for a while, on the other side of the desk. Clinks and scrapes of metal on metal, more explosions (but none as loud as the first), the crackle of fire and weird sounds he didn't recognize. He couldn't hear or see the other kids. Ashi was whimpering as much as her dog, both holding their heads in pain. Hizumi had buried her face in his shirt. All four of them jerked when something hit the desk beside them.

Keidyan was as scared as he'd ever been in his life. He held Ashi and Hizumi under him, but he felt his arms shaking. He had to get up. Iruka-sensei needed help. Why wouldn't his legs move? He tried to peek over the desk, but his head was too heavy to lift.

And then Iruka-sensei screamed.

Kei wrenched himself away from the girls and looked. The classroom was wrecked. The kids in the first row huddled behind their desks like he did. The bad guys had their backs to him. There was somebody enormous covered head to foot in shiny metal armor standing next to the man in black from before… who held Sensei off the ground on what looked like a pair of swords in his chest. All the blood made Kei want to scream, cry and throw up all at once. Instead he ducked down and reached into the drawer in the underside of the desk, pulling out the kunai there.

Ashi could see a little better by now. When he turned to get up she grabbed his arm. "No, Keidyan, no! You can't!" she whispered desperately.

"I gotta! Sensei-! He-! I gotta!" he whispered back just as frantically. He didn't want to, but he couldn't stop. He pulled Hizumi off him and pushed her into Ashi's hands. Little sis tried to wriggle loose and opened her mouth to bawl, but Kei shushed her and rushed out from behind the desk.

He had to get Iruka-sensei free first. Gripping the kunai tightly, he screamed as loud as he could and charged the man in black-

-and then he was three feet off the ground, caught up in that long, flexy… thing. It came out from beneath the black coat. A tail? Whatever it was, it was as hard as iron, and a sharp, dripping needle at its end waved in his face.

The intruder turned and eyed him. He wore a headband that looked like it was made from scrap metal. "Blond hair, white eyes, even dumber than he looks… could they make this any easier for us?" He patted Keidyan's head, condescending of his struggles. As he did he opened his coat wide enough that Kei saw what he had stabbed Iruka-sensei with were not swords but an extra pair of bladed… arms? coming out below the normal set. The freak's crazy grin grew wider and he turned back to the teacher, watching through bloodied eyes. Sensei tried to reach for something, but the intruder twisted the blades, sending him into spasms of helpless pain. Kei snarled in anger.

"I suppose this one had a little more fire than I expected," said the freak, "but that just makes me want to snuff it out!" His arm-things tensed, and Iruka-sensei screamed again.

"Wait." Kei struggled to turn toward the new voice. Another man in a black coat and a deep black hood was standing in the doorway. "That's the Hokage's favorite teacher. If you kill him, the Sixth will take it personally."

The freak laughed. "That just sweetens the kill."

"Leave him alive to pass a message," continued the other stranger, "and the Hokage might catch up to us."

The freak smiled that creepy smile of his. "Can't call it ignoring orders if he comes to us. I like that." He dropped Iruka-sensei in a heap. Sensei didn't make a sound. He wasn't moving.

"My dad's gonna be here any second, and then you're all gonna pay!" screamed Kei. He made himself to look away, and when he did he saw the stranger's eyes, burning red like embers in his deep hood, and burning right into Keidyan. Something like a dozen nightmares happening at once overtook him, and whatever he was going to say next died on his lips.

Then suddenly he was struggling for breath as the coiled thing constricted around his chest and the freak leaned in close. "Sorry kid, I think mommy and daddy have their hands full right now… fighting for their lives!"

Keidyan didn't buy it for a second. His dad was the greatest ninja ever, period. He tried to get enough breath to throw that in their faces, but then the big metal man moved a little. Where his face would be a lot of blank metal plates turned toward the freak.

"Yeah, yeah," grumbled the freak. "Ugly plant, taking so long to die… Alright kid, take a good look around and say goodbye." Kei's eyes widened from more than the fight for breath. "But look at the bright side, at least you get to skip class."

There was a squeaking noise behind him. "You leave my big brother alone!" Was that Hizumi's voice? Why did she sound so far away? He tried to twist and look back, but it was really more of a weak flop. Yep, there was Zumi, runny eyes and nose and running down the stairs. Ashi was holding her finger and running after her.

Suddenly there was another bad guy there, swatting Ashi back and scooping up his sister. He looked sick, there was one of those scrap metal plates over his mouth, and he hadn't been there a second ago. Had he?

_Our luck continues._ What? What luck? Keidyan was confused. _We weren't expecting to pick up the spare._

They had Hizumi. Kei's brain said he should do something, but his body was sleepy. Sis was watching him and crying silently. He tried to shake himself, wake up, get angry. Where had his kunai gone? Someone was saying something, but he couldn't hear…

He couldn't…

…

* * *

Keidyan jerked awake. His cold toes and that weird blue moss light told him he was still in the cave cell. He sat up carefully so he wouldn't wake Hizumi, curled up on the only mat under the only blanket, with only enough space left for his head. His butt hurt from the hard stone floor.

He rubbed his face and threw a grumpy glare at the cell door. The eyes weren't there this morning. Was it morning? Or had the nightmare woken him up early? He couldn't tell. He never felt tired after a bad dream. It wasn't like there was much to do in this dump between meals anyway. Maybe if he laid back down he could dream about the day Dad and Mom busted them out of here again.

Just as Kei started to tip back the sound of a door opening drifted through the air. He tried to catch himself but only managed to flop awkwardly on his side. "Ack!"

By the time he'd righted himself a face had appeared at his door. It had bulgy eyes that looked even bigger through the goggles strapped under the forehead that looked like it had grown out around them. There were lines that looked like stitches running all over his nose and cheeks, and in the weird light they looked really creepy.

Even moreso because he was mashing his face right in between the bars and smiling way too much. "Hello, little boy. Are you ready to begin?"

Kei eyed him carefully. "Whaddya mean?"

"Why, the reason you were brought here, of course! The examination! The exper-" his tongue stuck out the side as far as it could reach and waggled all quick-like. "-just a few tests for you to take."

Oh great, another freak. "Do we get to go home after I take them?"

"Nope nope nope! One way or another you'll never see your home again!"

Kei wanted to scream and punch him right in his big oversized eye. "Then why should I?"

"Why?" The latest weirdo burst into a fit of giggles. "'Why,' hnnihihi. Not why, how, _how_ is the first question, boy. If you don't volunteer I can give you something that will give you an _interesting_, hnahah, time, and we can do the tests while you're dreaming." He smiled even wider, and Kei thought he heard a popping sound from the stitches on his upper lip. "Of course, if we do it that way, you won't have any idea what goes on in this room while you're gone. Or while you recover. For days."

It took Keidyan a minute to figure out what he meant. When he heard Hizumi turn over behind him, he felt sick. "Okay fine, I'll do your stupid tests!" he blurted quickly. The freak nodded eagerly, rubbing his face along the metal bars, before waggling a finger forward. Kei hesitated. "What happens if I pass?" he asked.

"Don't know. Depends on how you pass."

There was more than one way? Kei shook his head. "…And what happens if I fail?"

One of those bulgy eyes twitched a little, and Kei thought he saw them glance past at his sister, but the freak kept smiling his creepy smile. "Well, let's just say that nobody wants you to fail. Nobody would be happy at all."

* * *

(End)

* * *

On a whim, I tried to 'dumb down' the narrative to reflect the very young point of view (fewer big words, more 'kiddy' ones, etc) but I'm not sure whether that added more than it took away. Eh, oh well, hope you guys liked this look through Kei's eyes anyway.

By the way, in case anyone is curious, assuming my translation research was done correctly, Ashi Inuzuka and Aomaru follow the Inuzuka naming convention: 'Ashi' means 'leg' and 'Ao/Aoi' means 'blue'. I wanted to make her ninja hound a female, but I didn't know the feminine equivalent of '-maru' and didn't want to spend the time to look it up. If any of you know a suitable one off the top of your head, I might retcon the pooch.

See you all next month, but hope to hear from you sooner.  
~ArcTheJedi


	11. Waterfall Village: Unfriendly Welcome?

What I did yesterday I'd intended to do on the 1st so I could start the month with this update, but the whole day and the day after were unexpectedly and completely consumed by other work that proved to be exhausting.

I didn't get to the convenient story break that I hoped to, but wanting 'just a bit more' was how I wound up taking months too long to finish. Sorry in advance for the short length and the relative lack of substance, but it's progress and it's approaching regular pacing; in my mind an improvement, hope you all can think so too.

Standing offer (that no one is presently taking advantage of): ask me about progress and I will write a page in one week and send you back a short sample.

**Disclaimer: I found sixteen cents lying around the house the other day and joked that I'd doubled my fortune. That should probably say all I need to here, other than I don't own the house either.**

* * *

The mists rose over the tree line, thick and visible even from this distance. Naruto eyed the horizon speculatively, comparing the roiling water to both a deceptive smokescreen and his own mood.

Beside him, Konohamaru scratched his hair and shifted his weight. "We are technically allies, but we're also kinda showing up out of nowhere. How do you wanna do this, Boss?"

"Thought I'd walk forward until they challenge us," replied the Hokage gruffly.

His pupil grunted. "What if they don't challenge us?"

"I'll knock," Naruto growled, stalking forward into controlled territory. "Real loud."

* * *

Half a mile later, the younger ninja was having second thoughts. "I'm just thinking out loud here," he was saying, "and it occurs to me that if they really are betraying us, shouldn't we have come here with more than just us?"

Naruto was about to answer over his shoulder, but instead he stopped his brisk pace and glanced around. "Halt! Who goes there?" he called with a certain smug satisfaction.

"Hey, that's our line!" a young man's voice came back out of the thick canopy overhead. Konohamaru, who had perked up when the Boss halted, waited at the ready and scanned above.

"Ooh, look, it's the runner-up!" This one was a woman, from the sound of her.

"Huh. You're right," said the first. "What's he doing here?"

Konohamaru's eyes narrowed. "Runner-up?"

"Yeah. I mean, we admit that he is pretty cool…"

"…but he's not better than our leader!"

"Ha! Who's better than the Sixth Hokage, and how come I've never heard of him?"

"Well obviously that's because you're one of those ninja who live under a rock and wouldn't know cool if it exploded in your face."

"It's just basic sense! Like keeping your kunai sharp! -You do know what those are, don't you?"

Konohamaru bristled. "I think so. Why don't you come on down here and I'll show one to you?"

"HEY!" The Hokage's voice echoed with authority. The younger Leaf snapped to attention like a fresh Academy graduate while the branches overhead jerked in turn. "I am here to speak to Shibuki, so I can ask him why a known enemy of the Leaf Village had a Hidden Waterfall shinobi headband!"

The unseen young man coughed and found his voice first. "That's another easy one; whoever it was didn't. Nobody from our Village would take a swing at a Leaf without Shibuki's say-so."

Naruto reached into his coat and pulled the offending piece of evidence. With a contemptuous flick he bared the plate's emblem and held it over his accusatory gaze. "We had its origin confirmed before we came."

One of their observers dropped to the ground in front of them. He was about Konohamaru's age, a little shorter. He had backswept dirt-colored hair tied in small beads, and his cheek was creased in the shape of a frequent smirk that was far from home right now. Staring at the headband with pinched concern, he silently reached for it before Naruto pulled it away. "I'll give it to Shibuki -IF he can give me a good explanation for it."

The young man glanced in the general direction of his cohort. "…All right, we'll guide you in. But your loudmouth there has to wait here or go home."

Konohamaru's eyes and fists clenched, but Naruto stepped in front of him and replied, "Loudmouths don't get to tell other loudmouths where they can or can't go."

The other ninja crossed his arms. "You're on our turf now, runner-up. What makes you think you can give orders or demands?" Naruto simply mirrored his posture, not even blinking when a sudden yelp overhead startled the Waterfall ninja. A petite blond girl dropped from the trees, caught out of the air on the back of the great hound Akamaru. "Miko!" Her comrade ran into the arm suddenly looped around his neck.

Rather than exploit the easy chokehold, Rock Lee grabbed the young man's shoulders in a crossing grip -technically harmless, but the demonstration was clear. He spoke clearly into the man's ear from behind. "I believe at this point the Hokage means to say that you cannot keep us out." He spun his captive around and clapped his shoulders again with a smile. "I too have great interest to meet this Shibuki, who you compare favorably to my eternal rival!"

Naruto shook his head. The Mighty Eyebrows had arrived days ago bearing the authenticated evidence, a profound and passionate apology, and an enthusiasm that had lasted ever since. The younger Waterfall ninja threw up his hands as much as he could. "Finally! A Leaf shinobi who gets it!"

Kiba landed with a cheeky grin and offered to help the girl Miko up from Akamaru's back, but she huffed and snubbed him, standing by herself. Miniature braids of her short curls ringed her face like a pale sunflower, and even at her full height she could look the shortest of them in the chin. She wore fishnet stealth gear instead of the chunin-grade flak jacket of her partner. "Sorry Mako, I should have been paying more attention."

"Don't worry about it, they got me too," replied the Waterfall boy. "We'll do better next time."

She nodded, and then hesitated. Sounding worried, she asked, "And, that headband they have. Is it really…?"

"Don't worry about it," he repeated grimly. "Shibuki'll figure it out. Let's go; follow us, Runner-up!" The two of them set off at a casual pace, the boy leading and the girl half-turned to watch them.

Lee followed close and said eagerly, "Tell me more about this Shibuki," a request the pair was more than happy to fulfill.

They followed a beaten path through the forest toward a far-off rise of steep, rocky terrain. Along the way their group was stopped several more times by scouting parties, checkpoints, and defensive patrols before word of their approach finally spread far enough, prompting Konohamaru to wonder, "I know the Waterfall really like to keep their borders secure, but this seems excessive. And is it just me, or do they look unhappy to see us?" The other shinobi they encountered ranged from distrustful to wary of the foreigners, and whenever Naruto had to flash the headband to explain their business there, several upgraded to restrained anger. But none of them denied passage.

The closer they drew to the Village, the more of its people they saw hurrying about. They paused and masked their faces when the Leaf party passed, but their business was not the sort to be easily concealed. Kiba leaned close and kept his voice low. "Hey, Naruto, you seeing all this? Defensive barricades? Improvised bunkers? I spot at least a dozen fresh ambush coves and tripwire traps without even looking hard, and I smell a lot of ordnance nearby."

Naruto scowled. He had noticed. "They're expecting unfriendly company."

"And a lot of it. I'm not sure our 'real loud knock' would have gone so well." He went silent to chew on it for a moment, before continuing, "I hate to say it, but what if the kid has a point? I mean the ink's barely dried on our treaty; last year most of this Village would have had no fewer problems putting kunai in our teeth as they would shaking our hands."

Naruto considered it. If the Village Hidden in the Waterfall was behind the attack and kidnapping, they'd never be stupid enough to leave evidence intentionally pointing the much larger, much stronger Leaf Village at themselves. But it seemed a very large coincidence that they would be preparing for grueling siege just after the Leaf had found that evidence. On the other hand, why would they then let him and his party past those defenses? _To lead us where we can't escape._ Ignoring that, Naruto thought of their leader, Shibuki. The man was generously considered a very cautious individual and more honestly known to be something of a chicken. All of this would seem to be tactics a coward would prefer, but Naruto had been there when Shibuki had become the man who would hold fast and risk everything for his people, and consequently he couldn't believe he was capable of such underhanded betrayal. More importantly, Naruto had been part of the inspiration for that growth, and the two had forged a bond. An old one by now, but still. "That treaty was based on the hope of strengthening friendship. My friend will have a good explanation for all of this."

"And if he doesn't?"

They'd arrived at a cave entrance leading down into the massive bluff. Their guides spoke briefly with the half-dozen guards standing watch before leading them on, and four of the latter company moved to follow after the Leaf shinobi from behind. Akamaru whined very faintly at the prospect of going underground. An ideal place to spring a trap, if they intended to.

Naruto felt his knuckles popping and forced himself to relax -but only a little. "He'd better."

* * *

(End)

* * *

Not a lot going on so far, but hopefully that's forgiveable for the first short scene in a new story arc.

Also, if anyone's not aware, the character Shibuki and a lot of the history referred to in this arc is from the Naruto OVA 'Mission: Protect the Waterfall Village!'

See you all next month, hope to hear from you sooner,

~ArcTheJedi


	12. Waterfall: The Coward and the Runner-Up!

Hello again all. Got a little bit more work done this time around.

Standing offer still stands: Ask me about progress and I'll write a page and send a line to prove it.

**Disclaimer: Surely no one's going to notice if I take one turn off with these same old disclaimers, right?**

* * *

The tunnel curved back and forth just enough to prevent line-of-sight down any reasonable length, but was otherwise straightforward. The slope was mildly uphill, wide enough for four people side by side, and there were no branching offshoots. Akamaru sniffed a few times and cocked his head, and Kiba grunted in agreement. "Oil, huh? The path is just steep enough that I bet pouring it from the end would coat the whole way pretty quickly." Their Waterfall escorts ignored him, but the supposition was well-supported; the walls and ceiling were lined with countless finger-sized holes, doubtlessly the delivery ports for any variety of traps -and those were only the visible ones. This tunnel was a gauntlet, and a fiercely-prepared one.

After about a hundred yards of this they came to a set of heavy double doors spanning the width of the passage and set into the stone. One ground open very slightly as they approached; Miko and Mako, the pair of junior Waterfall shinobi the Leaf had first encountered, motioned for them to remain where they were and slipped through the opening, which closed immediately behind them. Naruto stood with his arms crossed, waiting impassively. Konohamaru mimicked his mentor beside him, though the impatience they both felt bled out through the younger's tapping foot. Kiba ruffled Akamaru's head and traded a cocky grin for stoic gazes from the four remaining guards, while Lee merely sat down cross-legged and watched the door as if afraid he might miss something.

Just when the wait was about to become conspicuous, the door began to grind open again. Unbidden, Naruto stalked forward immediately, the other Leaf ninja falling in seamlessly behind. No one challenged them, and they crossed through the doorway as soon as it was wide enough. The next room was a bunker-like circular hub, with several smaller obvious exit tunnels spaced along the walls. Obviously a tactical control center, there were easily a dozen more Waterfall personnel within at various monitors and radio stations, though all paused to eye their visitors warily. In the center of the room a detailed map was laid out on a massive, sturdy metal table, and on its far side, flanked by advisors and the same two junior ninja, was the man the Hokage had come to see.

"Hey Shibuki. Nice to see you," called Naruto, though his eyes were a little too hard for the mirth in his voice.

The leader of the Hidden Waterfall Village had long hair appropriately cascading down his shoulders and back, with two thick locks framing his face like a drawn curtain. He was dressed for battle in what looked like a highly decorated ceremonial derivative of the standard Waterfall jonin jacket under a symbolic white-and-blue mantle, an outfit that he could not have looked less comfortable in. He gave only a brittle smile and a curt nod in response before asking, "May I see the headband?"

When Naruto made to walk around the table, all of the Waterfall ninja tensed, and Shibuki winced. Rolling his eyes, Naruto remained where he was and tossed the bundled headband across to the other man. Shibuki paused to study the emblem face before turning away from the Leaf ninja. From the motion of his elbows he was making a few hand signs around the headband. A moment later he hung his head and turned back, his voice heavy. "Yes, it's Saidan's." Quickly fading words had appeared on the plate near the emblem: _Saidan Doneki, Chunin_. All of his comrades sagged. Miko and Mako in particular looked sick.

"Did it say anything else?" asked the man at Shibuki's right hand, a few years his younger and built like a frontline soldier in a standard-issue jacket.

Shibuki shook his head. "Nothing. He must have thought he could make it back."

"Or…" The advisor looked at the Leaf and grimaced, as if regretting the words he said next. "Or else the message was erased."

The Hokage crossed his arms. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Shibuki held up placating hands. "Let's not jump to conclusions, Dakomaru." He turned back to Naruto. "Saidan is a gifted shinobi of the next generation."

"The best of us!" Mako interrupted.

"The pride of our Village!" agreed Miko.

Shibuki continued. "He's still only a chunin but he was the youngest to reach the rank in years. Accordingly, I've been giving him more responsibilities and important missions."

"He's also my younger brother," added the other man, Dakomaru, and his voice was worried. "And he was out on his latest solo assignment when we lost contact with him." He paused to defer to his leader, who picked up where he left off.

"Before he disappeared, he sent us a coded message claiming that he had discovered a vicious conspiracy against the Hidden Waterfall Village," Shibuki shifted and his hands moved restlessly, "and it sounded like it was going to be very aggressive, and very soon."

Kiba spoke up. "There aren't that many important missions shinobi can do alone and you don't just stumble onto something like that doing most of them. He was a spy, I take it?"

"I see!" Lee saw where he was going and nodded. "That would explain the apprehension at our presence!"

"You were spying on us! Who spies on their own allies?" demanded Konohamaru.

"What's the big deal?" retorted Mako. "I'm sure you guys are spying on us too!"

"No, actually, we're not," said Naruto very quietly. "And when _I_ heard something disturbing about _you_, I came to ask you about it."

Shibuki broke under the Hokage's accusing stare and turned guiltily away, the rest of the Waterfall personnel following suit. His head bowed, Dakomaru murmured, "If I may presume to speak, I would recognize that some of our practices may be… disreputable, but we do what we must to protect ourselves. We are not nearly as powerful as your Leaf Village; even a radical splinter of your military might could pose a great threat to us."

Naruto wanted to shoot back a retort, but ground his teeth and couldn't; despite his wishes to the contrary the Leaf Village had never been spotless of traitors or fanatics. He'd faced several of them personally.

Shibuki coughed and looked at him. "Um. Are you plotting against us?"

"You know me better than that. If I meant you harm you'd hear about it loud and clear, not from some spy's report."

That made the other man smirk, but one of the Waterfall ninja in the room said, "With respect, would they answer otherwise if they were?"

"They could have attacked," replied Dakomaru. "They are in the heart of our defenses, but we could not prevent the Hokage from taking our leader." Said leader fidgeted.

"We'd like to see them try!" The junior hot-bloods took a protective step closer to Shibuki.

"Then why let us so close willingly?" said Konohamaru, ignoring them.

The advisor shrugged. "We mean to protect our home to the last man, but if the Sixth Hokage and all of the Leaf Village were truly intent on conquering us, it wouldn't matter." The air boiled as all of his countrymen silently protested, gripping weapons and clenching muscles, but none spoke up to dispel the claim. Dakomaru spoke to his leader. "It may be optimistic, but I think we have no choice but to trust them."

"Of course we're going to trust them," answered Shibuki, offering Naruto a wary smile. "We are allies, right?"

"And friends," Naruto added firmly. Beside him Lee offered his trademark thumbs-up and grin.

"Okay," said Shibuki, "now that we all know we can trust each other" -the words far more certain than the tone- "I have to ask where you got this headband and what became of its owner."

"He said a known enemy of the Leaf had it," supplied the girl Miko.

"A rogue shinobi, or at least one hiding his clan and Village," confirmed Naruto. "He left it behind very obviously for me to find. The criminal group he belongs to wanted me to come here."

"Perhaps it is the same miscreants who have wronged us that are behind this mystery plot as well!" exclaimed Lee, slamming fist into palm.

"I'd certainly prefer to think it's some scattered mercenaries we have to worry about, not a Village military," muttered Shibuki.

Naruto grimaced. "'Scattered mercs' might be the wrong impression. These guys slipped in and out of our Village practically undetected while we were on alert, and they had an original Akatsuki member as a distraction."

"Oh. Great. And here I thought we could relax."

Dakomaru spoke out of a somber repose. "If they're truly that formidable, I fear Saidan's fate is all but set in stone. He was gifted, but not to that level." The room fell silent. Shibuki and his advisors bowed their heads, and each of the Leaf ninja joined them in respect. Several of the younger Waterfall personnel sagged in their chairs or against the walls. One tall man near the back muttered what sounded like a prayer.

"I'm sorry to bring such news to you," murmured Naruto.

Dakomaru's pained face acknowledged the sentiment before he slowly continued. "We might also be preparing for the wrong sort of attack. We feared invasion, but it sounds like these rogues would be more inclined to sabotage…" he turned and posed a significant glance, "or assassination."

Shibuki swallowed. "S-surely not. Why would anyone target… I mean, what could I have done to attract…"

The advisor sighed like a patient master revisiting an old topic with a trouble student. "You are the leader of our people. Our heart and soul."

"You make me sound more than I am. I'm not- I'm not-" Trembling and sweating, he seemed to be shrinking under that impressive mantle, wasting away.

"This is the great leader who's supposed to be even cooler than the Boss?" said Konohamaru under his breath.

Lee grimaced and leaned in, whispering, "I confess that he does not seem to live up to the expectations I was lead to hold."

Kiba snorted, and Akamaru sniffed. Several of the Waterfall shinobi heard the Leaf party's aside comments and glared at them. Naruto shot his subordinates a warning look before raising his voice. "Come on Shibuki, situations like this are when a leader steps up. Believe it! Show us what you're made of!"

"The runner-up is right, Lord Shibuki!" crowed Mako.

"We all look up to you, Lord Shibuki!" cheered Miko.

"And we'd gladly give our lives before we let anything happen to you!"

"You can count on us, every bit as much as we count on you!" Cheers went up in accord with each of the two young ninja's claims.

Shibuki, who looked no less ill but at least stopped deteriorating, waved them down impatiently. "Alright, alright, let's just stop talking about this," he said in a rush. He took a deep breath before continuing. "Naruto. You said these criminals left Saidan's headband for you to find, and that they wanted you to come here. It seems too simple to think they hoped we'd trade blows without words, so I have to wonder why they'd lead you here." He frowned. "And why are you chasing them in the first place? What did they do in the Leaf Village?"

Expectant eyes both Leaf and Waterfall turned to the Hokage. He grimaced. "I'd… rather talk about that in private." He brushed past it. "In the meantime, I have to agree it was stupid of them to bring me here -because now anyone messing with you has to deal with us too."

There were mixed reactions to these words. Some of the Waterfall, like the young hot-bloods, looked encouraged, but a few others rolled their eyes, and the oldest ranged from disgruntled muttering to suspicious stares. The rest of the Leaf ninja shifted, feeling less than welcome, yet all determined to follow the Hokage's lead.

Relief was written plainly on Shibuki's face, however. "I appreciate that, Naruto, I really do. And if you need to speak in private, then we should move to the Village proper." He turned to the tall somber man at the back. "Commander, I leave the preparations in your hands." The man nodded. "Dakomaru, you're with me." The advisor nodded. The young duo and several guards moved to come along as well. Shibuki took one last look around. "All right, everyone. Back to work." Under his breath he added, "And may fortune continue to smile on us."

* * *

(End)

* * *

Mostly exposition and not much actually going on this time, but at least I've laid the groundwork for the arc. To whom it may apply, have a happy Fourth of July! To everyone else, I wish you well, and see you all next month!

~ArcTheJedi


	13. Waterfall: Good Signs and Bad Ones

Well, I missed the start of the month by almost a week and there isn't much here this time, but that's because last month was largely consumed trying to get my house ready to be sold and then showing it, and last week we succeeded a lot sooner than expected, so I've been a bit preoccupied finding a new place to live. I have (for the time being, at least), but a lot of other things are happening at the same time and I've never been the type to adapt to this degree of change quickly, so I'm afraid my brain is still a little haywire.

Hopefully I'll find my groove again by the end of this month, and I hope to try and make it all up to you then.

**Disclaimer: Ironically, despite the fact that we've just sold my house, I actually don't own even less than before -because I didn't own the house, either...**

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Naruto and Shibuki walked side by side alone, which the former took as a good sign. Their respective companions were visibly less inclined to such mingling, but they hung back enough to allow the two of them private council. They were moving toward the great tree at the center of the Waterfall Village's crater, taking the wide main street through the civilian housing section of the town.

The common folk went about their business almost as casually as they did everywhere else. There was none of the apprehension of the shinobi, only a sort of deliberate confidence about them. These people knew the danger and moved with an appropriate purpose to finish their errands early, but they seemed largely unconcerned, in contrast to the sparse net of ninja guards scattered about, some who barely looked comfortable in their flak jackets.

They briefly parted a mob of children playing some sort of chasing game as they passed. One, a girl with almost silvery blond hair cut in ragged bangs and a nub of a ponytail, paused to look at the Hokage's coat and grin up at his face before being dragged along by her friends. He had to grin back.

"It's always been… tense when we're expecting attack, even back when I was a child and my father was leader," Shibuki was saying. "We just never have the numbers most of our adversaries could potentially field, and we've never had more than a crutch of ninja that make it to jonin-level compared to the other Villages. Besides Dakomaru and myself, I could count the number of active jonin we have right now on two hands." One of the hands in question had been floating near his collar, tugging at it often. He forced a weak laugh. "And I never even formally passed the jonin exam! The Village just considers me one due to my 'achievements'." His voice made it sound like he meant the word 'crimes' instead.

"Hey, I'd barely risen above genin by the time I became Hokage," remarked Naruto, prompting a faint smirk. "Still, it's amazing that you guys have managed to repel so much with mostly low-rank ninja."

His friend nodded, his hand hovering. "We've had to research and specialize a lot of defensive techniques, most of which have to be accessible to large groups of crude talents. Beyond that, most of our defense is tied up in the perfect terrain and location advantages," he said, gesturing at the massively tall, sheer crater walls, "and… the Hero Water." His neck suddenly needed a lot of air. "A-anyway, all that the villagers know is that despite the odds we've never failed, and they assume we never will."

Naruto scowled. The Hero Water was both the trump card of the Hidden Waterfall Village and the only real reason to target it in the first place, as Naruto himself knew from firsthand experience. He also knew Shibuki's father had been forced to resort to the draught, and the act had claimed his life. For that matter, the last time they'd teamed up Shibuki himself had drunk the Water, and he'd barely survived the experience as well. Naruto figured he could understand a little better why his friend's nerves had not hardened much in the intervening years.

"Look out!"

Both leaders spun and jerked away from the kunai suddenly darting between them. Naruto saw the flicker of sparks, and seizing Shibuki threw them both to the ground and away. The attached paper bomb detonated an instant later, a sudden roar gouging the dirt and the calm. Civilians screamed and fled.

Naruto was on his feet as soon as the heat faded. The Waterfall guards in the immediate area were searching frantically, but there was no sign of the assailant. The children had disappeared, and an adult villager stood half-hidden in each doorway, waiting and watching. Both sets of escorts had swarmed up and around their leaders, replacing the roar of fire with one of confused voices.

"Leaf treachery!" cried one voice.

"Protect Lord Shibuki!" came another.

"_Leaf_ treachery?!" yelled Konohamaru. "That dart was heading right for the Boss's back!"

"Lies! The Hokage tried to drag our leader to his doom!"

"ENOUGH!" shouted Dakomaru across the chaos. The advisor was crouched by Shibuki. "Fools! This is not the time! Half of you fan out and help search for the attacker, the other half form a decent perimeter! Now! Move!" And the Waterfall ninja snapped to comply. Miko and Mako stood nearly back to back over their leader, fiercely clutching their kunai, and the three remaining escorts spaced themselves evenly in a small circle around them. All of them faced the Leaf party.

Even as he took all this in, Naruto was already creating shadow clones and snapping his own orders. "Okay, everyone, spread out and-"

"No, you can't!" called Dakomaru urgently. Naruto paused, and Konohamaru visibly hitched, halfway into a leap. "You must let us handle this -if any of your party leaves our company it will cast suspicion on you!"

Naruto clenched his jaw and would have disputed -he would have gladly accepted help if this had happened in the Leaf Village- but he also understood the Waterfall's desire to take the lead in their own home. It was then that Kiba spoke up, quietly at his ear. "Little late for that." Naruto blinked, and counted his companions standing among the shadow clones. He came up one short.

"Bushy Brow…" he groaned, reaching fingers up underneath his headband. The excitable taijutsu master had vanished. He briefly considered disguising one of his clones as the missing comrade, and Kiba offered to track him down, but ultimately he decided against both, not wishing to add to the potential problems. Besides, Dakomaru seemed to have noticed as well; the advisor's face darkened but he said nothing.

Instead he called out to his opposite number, "Hey Shibuki, are you alright?"

His friend shuddered and sat up, almost hidden beneath his junior protégés and his advisor. Naruto saw that the man was trembling. "Yeah," he said with a matching voice. "Peachy."

"We need to get you out of the open, Lord Shibuki!" said a worried Mako.

Dakomaru nodded grimly and moved to help him up. "It appears we were right to worry about assassination."

"Not much of an attempt though," frowned Naruto thoughtfully, looking around. "I mean, one basic paper-bombed kunai? I saw a lot worse before I even took office as Hokage."

It was the wrong thing to say. "Yes, well," came Shibuki's testy response, "I'm afraid some of us are a bit closer to mortal than others, Naruto." Without another word he set off with his remaining guard closely in tow.

Dakomaru hung back. "I'll show you to some rooms near headquarters," he said. "Please, to avoid making things look even worse for you, stay there until we call." He lowered his voice. "Is your comrade likely to cause much of a stir abroad?"

Lee? Naruto winced, and saw that Kiba shared his degree of optimism. "…I'll take responsibility for his actions," was all he could say.

The other man grimaced. "…Well, this way," he said reluctantly, moving off to one side. Naruto glanced at the retreating back of the Waterfall leader and sighed.

So much for easing tensions.

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(End)

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Wish me luck, and see you all next month.

~ArcTheJedi


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